Deceptions and Revelations
by Beemishbeliever
Summary: Kelly's first case after being shot leads to unexpected romance, tragedy for a friend, a reuniting with an old friend and some assistance from a new one. Kelly's wits and perseverance are tested to their max, while she learns the answer to an old secret.


Kelly dialed Kris's number as she turned at the corner of her street. The rings seemed to be continuing far too long, but in reality only three had passed before Kris picked up.

"Hello," she answered groggily.

"Hi Kris, it's Kelly. I'm sorry that I woke you."

"How could you tell, did I really sound that bad?" Kris responded her usual cheerfulness returning to her voice. "I was out late on a stakeout last night. Since you've been away from the office, Julie, Bos, and I all have to do a little bit extra."

"I know Kris, and I'm sorry, but with any luck I should be back at work soon. It looks like the shipment is going to go down tonight. If it all goes as planned, I could be back before the end of the week."

"So Miss F.B.I. agent, how's it going?"

"That's what I'm calling you about." Kelly's voice brightened. "Jim proposed to me this morning and I've accepted."

Kris erupted in her most cheerful voice, "Kelly, I'm so happy for you. We have to get together and celebrate. How did he do it, did he have the ring, have you set a date?" Kris continued in rapid fire succession.

"Slow down," Kelly replied laughing. He did have the ring, I have it on my hand right now, and it is glistening in the sun as we speak. It is a marquise, with four smaller diamonds around it, set in platinum. He stopped over this morning and said that he meant to do this in a more romantic way, but he just couldn't wait. Then he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. Kris, I don't think I could have been more surprised. I probably would have expected something if we were going some place fancy, but this was so sweet. We had breakfast together and the whole time, I kept thinking that I would enjoy sharing these daily moments with him. I finally found the one that's for me."

"Kelly, he is a terrific guy. It has been quite a whirlwind for you. Of course, he's a lucky guy as well."

"Thanks Kris, I've got to let you go; I've got to meet with Larry Novotny about the set up for tonight and I've got to call a couple of other people before I get to the office. I'll call you soon, and let Julie and Jill know if you talk or see them. I have something special to ask of Bos, so I might try giving him a call in a little bit."

"Congratulations and we'll talk soon," Kris said as she hung up.

Kelly headed toward the small brick office building that Novotny was using as his headquarters since coming to Los Angeles. He was a no nonsense kind of guy who didn't smile often. Kelly couldn't deny that he was good at his job and after months of setting the stage tonight would be the night to spring the trap. The office was in rough neighborhood, but it worked for the situation that they were working on. Ten months earlier, Kelly Garrett lay in a hospital bed pondering her future after having been shot for the second time. She was lucky to be alive and this time the shooting had not been a freak accident like the first. Her fellow colleagues, Kris Munroe, Julie Rogers, and John Bosley were all hopeful of her return, but none of them put any pressure on her to do so. Her boss, Charles Townsend had kept her on the payroll and had been wonderfully kind.

When nearly a month had passed since the shooting, Kelly received an unexpected phone call; a former junkie named Bosman Damons had phoned her to let her know that large shipments of cocaine were flooding into Los Angeles. Bosman had since turned his life around and was now working as a minister. When Kelly questioned why he was calling her, he informed her that there had to be at least one maybe more L.A. cops who were involved in helping to notify the dealers. He knew that he could trust Kelly and he gave her the names of some of the local distributors. He hadn't been able to get the names of any of the top men, but promised that he would get back to her as soon as he had any further information. Kelly was unsure what to do with the information. She could check out some of the leads herself, she could call Charlie, or perhaps she needed to go to another source. Kelly called Charlie and he was happy to hear from her. In the course of the discussion, Charlie suggested she talk with the F.B.I., but also said that he would have one of their associates, Julie Rogers check out a couple of the names. After Charlie's call, Kelly tried to do things around the house, but all she could think about was Bosman's call. Maybe it was time to go back to work. She headed down to the office but no one was around. She decided to head over to Bosman's church, a little prayer wouldn't hurt and maybe he had uncovered some more information.

When she saw the small church building, she recalled the day it had opened. Bosman had gotten out of prison seven years earlier after serving six months in jail. He got a job working for a construction company; in addition he worked a second job at nights as a dishwasher. He had a goal that one day he would build a church in his neighborhood and help kids to stay out of trouble. When he started working for the construction company, he had asked them if he could have the odd leftover materials that they wouldn't be using. The foreman saw no reason not to let him have them. After a year, Bosman saved enough money to buy the empty lot which sat beside his house. He had kept the parcel in great shape, even planting a neighborhood garden on it. As time went on, Bosman began to build his church, which he named the Living Waters Baptist Church. He had found that he was quite skilled as a carpenter and many of his co-workers volunteered their time to build the church. When it was finally completed, he invited Kelly to the opening. She had helped him get a reduced sentence after he had assisted her in bringing down a dealer who was involved in the deaths of two women. He had seen the worst in people and he was determined to make sure that he was no longer a part of that. Bosman's church had been a success. He started many youth programs and was now a pillar of the community. Kelly recalled the large, rough, youth who practically dared her to shoot him, when she caught him trying to break into a car. She recalled seeing something in his eyes that told her that he was frightened. Kelly remembered trying to reason with him and seeing his resolve lessen until it finally gave way. Bosman continued his bravado as he was brought into the precinct, but somehow Kelly felt there was more to him than a thief and junkie. After being searched it was discovered that Bosman had been carrying a gun and also had 20 grams of cocaine on him. Kelly had often wondered why he didn't pull the gun when she initially saw him. A few hours after his arrest a thin, attractive black woman came in looking for Bosman. Kelly would never have guessed that this woman was his mother. She couldn't have been more than 16 or 17 when she had him, Kelly had estimated. Kelly took the woman back to the holding cell and waited nearby. This once fierce angry youth who was twice his mother's size was getting lectured and dressed down by this petite matriarch. When his mother was through, Kelly began to speak to her about the bail process. His mother told her that she would not be making bail. Even if she had the money, it would be good for Bosman to learn his lesson.

The next few days Kelly would stop by his cell, but usually he just glared at her. On good days, she'd get a mumbled, 'hello'. Then one day, when his cell was empty he initiated a new topic of conversation.

"I might know something that could be helpful to you," he said to Kelly like a poker player raising the stakes.

"I see, so what is this information that you have, I've got the feeling that since you've been cooling your heals in here for a week that your info might already be a little old." Kelly replied curious about his sudden change in demeanor.

"I know this information is good, and since I'm guessing that you take a lot of hell from all the guys around here, you'd like to break open a big case to prove that you're up to the task."

"I don't need to prove myself." Kelly responded indignantly.

"I bet, well then let's just say I'm rather small potatoes, but I could definitely get you a bigger fish. This one's been knocking off chicks over on the east side. I bet you're familiar with those."

Kelly knew that homicide had been working on the cases for a few months but had turned up no leads.

The only things turning up were more dead girls.

"Yeah, I know about them. What do you know about them?" She quizzed him intently.

"That all depends on what you can do for me."

"I don't make those kinds of deals, but I can get in touch with someone who does. Your problems are the gun and the coke that you were carrying. I'm not sure they can make those charges disappear."

"They better or there are going to be more dead girls." He declared forcefully.

"So if I help you out, you'll tell me whose been killing the girls, and if I don't you're just going to let it continue?" Kelly said disapprovingly.

"Yeah, I need to get out of here and that's my ticket."

"I guess I was wrong about you. I spoke with your mother and she gave every indication that you had always been a good son, and a hard worker. She thought this was just one bad decision that you had made and she was sure that you would learn from it. I'll say this for you, you really have her snowed. I'll pass on your message to the D.A.'s office." Kelly said as she started walk away.

"Wait," his tone had changed less cocky more sincere. "My mother's the reason that I've got to get out of here. She needs somebody to help her out."

"I guess you should have thought of that before you started stripping the column on that Buick." Kelly responded unsympathetically.

"Hey, you think it's easy having to help support your mother from the time you're a little kid. I was just trying to make a little extra cash."

"Save the sob story, your blood test indicates that you were sampling the goods and frankly I would have been grateful to have a mother who cared about me as much as yours does. We've all got issues, it's how you choose to deal with them that shows what your real character is."

When Kelly came to work the next day, Bosman had been moved. One of the other officers indicated that he had provided some information that could be used in another case, although the officer didn't know which case. Kelly saw that he had been moved to an interrogation room. She headed that way because she had a few minutes before her shift started. As she approached the room she met Vaughn McCarter, a new up and coming assistant D.A. Kelly had worked with him on a few cases and had found him to be ego free and rather charming. His one flaw was that he was married.

"Hey Vaughn, what did he tell you."

"Kelly, I can't really say, but since you are the arresting officer I guess I can fill you in a little bit. He fingered the dirt bag that knocked off those two girls. The guy is a pretty major player in the drug scene as well."

"So what did you offer him for the info, I suppose he's going to walk."

"No, that's the weird thing, he just told a guard he wanted to speak to someone from the D.A.'s office right away. I had gotten your message and was already on my way. He didn't ask for anything, said he thought it was time to show what kind of character he really had."

"What kind of time is he realistically looking at?" Kelly questioned.

"Probably anywhere from 2 to 10 years depending on the judge." Vaughn commented absently.

"Is there anything you can do to get that reduced? I mean he probably saved at least one life and he has given the families of the other girls some closure."

"Are you getting soft on me, Garrett? That cannon he was carrying would have taken your head off had he used it."

"I know, but he didn't use it and that's why I think he's got a chance. See what you can do."

"I'm not making any promises, but with a confession, I think I can get some leniency."

Thoughts of those long ago days flashed into Kelly's mind as she pulled up in front of the white clapboard church. She got out of her car and headed up the porch steps of Bosman's house where she was greeted by two rambunctious boys. Michael and Elijah were 4 and 6 and they were their dad's pride and joy.

"Where's your dad?" She asked as they continued to play tag

"He's in the church, probably in his office. If you go around back, you can get in."

"Thanks boys." Kelly said heading towards the back of the building.

She knocked lightly on the door, but no answer came. She could hear the sound of hymns playing in the background and figured that Bosman didn't hear her knock. She opened the door and stepped inside. Still no sign of him, but she could hear the hymns coming from a small room off to the side. The 'office' sign was also a give away. Once again she knocked, this time a bit more robustly. Still she got no reply. She opened the door, and gasped. Bosman lay slumped over his desk, blood staining the desk calendar below him, and a single gunshot wound to the head clearly visible. Kelly's eyes welled with tears as she walked over beside him and felt for the pulse in his neck that she knew she would not find. She turned around quickly and headed to the car. First she called the police and then she called Charlie. Then she turned to the two small boys and asked them for their mother's telephone number. It was the hardest call she ever had to make. She went over and sat by the boys as the police cars began to arrive. Their mother arrived shortly after and Kelly would never forget the sorrow that she both saw and experienced on that day. The case was no longer about some abstract fight against illegal drugs. It was personal and she would make sure that whoever had taken the life of this good man would pay. It was time to show what kind of character and determination she had.

Kelly contacted a friend of Charlie's who worked for the F.B.I. She set up a meeting and after a long process found out that the feds had already been looking into increased traffic in drugs and the sudden decline in arrests in the L.A. area. A sting operation was already in place but they were looking for a woman to work with them. The previous female agent had broken a leg and was removed from the field. If Kelly was willing she would act as the new enforcer's girlfriend. Novotny acted as the normally unseen kingpin, while his enforcer was an agent named Jim Fischer. Jim had already begun his infiltration of the real drug operation, but they wanted to have someone close by so that he would have backup should he need it. The easiest way to do that was to get Jim a girlfriend. When the previous agent broke her leg, she was supposedly killed by Jim as a sign of his loyalty to his new boss. Kelly agreed to go along with the cover even though she still didn't feel back to normal. Ever since the shooting, she experienced occasional blurred vision and headaches, but as each day passed they became less frequent. Over the next few months Kelly spent most of her days with Jim Fischer. She had become such an infrequent visitor to her own home that she had asked Bosley to come over and collect her mail for her. Jim's house was down by the beach not far from Kris's place. They spent much of their time at small bars that acted as fronts for most of the drug sales. This task would have been almost unbearable if Jim Fischer wasn't so charming and intelligent. During their work, Jim played his part of tough guy enforcer to the hilt, getting into bar fights and generally instilling fear into anyone who crossed his path. Then there was the Jim that Kelly grew to know in their time away from work. He was laid back, well read, fascinated by art and history, and incredibly thoughtful. They had watched many sunrises and sunsets over the ocean and Kelly was definitely getting comfortable in his presence. Although she had initially fought against the idea because of their work, she realized that he better than anyone could understand the risks, rewards, and tensions that came with her job. Since she would not be working with him forever, she eventually relented and from then on, they were each other's world. She would be glad when tonight was over and she and Jim would no longer have to continue the charade. This assignment had become almost a 24 hour a day, 7 day a week work load. She longed for some normal time with Jim and missed spending time with Kris, Bos, and Julie. Although they would meet occasionally and Kelly talked to them frequently, it still wasn't the same as the day to day rapport that she had with them.

"Hello Garrett," Novotny grunted as she walked into the office.

"Hello Larry," Kelly replied knowing that it annoyed him to be called by his first name, but for some reason she enjoyed the glare he invariably gave her.

"Fischer is late. Tonight the whole thing is going to go down and he's late. You know you just squeaked in on time." He grumbled annoyed.

"It's probably my fault; he came over to my house this morning."

"I hope you didn't wear him out. The both of you couldn't manage to come together on time?"

Kelly ignored the first part of his comment "Jim said he had a stop to make this morning. He needed to meet with one of the guys who'll be at the drop tonight."

"He didn't clear that with me." Novotny barked back.

"I'm just letting you know what he told me."

"Well Garrett when they put you in charge, then Fischer should clear things with you, until then I would like to know what the hell is going on."

"So what does the time frame look like on this?" Kelly asked trying to switch channels a bit.

"9:30 you and Fischer are going to meet Mario del Toro at O'Gara's pub. He's the one who's going to take you to the sight to pick up the supplies. I'll be waiting outside in the car with the cash. The car is fitted with a tracker so everyone will know where we'll be. Davidson and Spillane will be with me acting as additional muscle. An important man like me should be well protected. I'll tell del Toro that I want to see the goods before I hand over the money. We'll follow them to wherever they've got the stuff. Hopefully, Desoto will be waiting there and we'll lower the boom on them. Think you can handle yourself in there, Garrett?"

"I think I'll be the least of your problems tonight, Agent Novotny."

"You're probably right. I just hope your boyfriend gets here soon. I would have preferred not to have explained this six different times."

"Is there anything else that you needed me for?" Kelly asked hoping to escape his continued sarcasm.

"Nope, just try to get your boyfriend there on time tonight; I wouldn't want his mind on something else." He said pointedly.

"We'll be there," Kelly responded as she headed out the door.

Kelly got into her car and gunned the engine as she pulled out of the parking spot. The man was infuriating, but she knew what he said about Jim was fair. He needed to play by the rules more often instead of acting as a lone wolf. It was the one trait in his character that worried her. Driving calmed the anxiety she was feeling, she was so close to having all this finished. Then she looked at her hand and saw the ring. Immediately, her mood was brightened. She loved Jim Fischer and soon she would be able to let the whole world know it. She picked up the phone and called the office.

"Townsend Associates, how can I help you," came Bosley's gravelly voice.

"Bos, it's Kelly."

"Kelly, I hear congratulations are in order. Kris told Julie and me just a little bit ago. Jim's a lucky guy, but I hope he knows what he's doing?"

"Geez Bos, am I that hard to get along with?"

"No Kelly, I just hope he never hurts you because he'd have to answer to us and we know where to bury bodies." Bosley jokingly replied.

"I suppose he has friends at the bureau that could take care of me in the same way."

"I guess it's a draw then, you must be made for one another. Kris said that you may actually be coming back to work soon."

"Yeah Bos, I'm hoping very soon. I miss you guys."

"We miss you to." Bosley replied sincerely.

"Bos, the reason I called was to ask a favor of you."

"Sure, name it."

"Bosley, when Jim and I get married would you be the one to give me away?"

"Oh Kelly, I would be honored to do it. You know that you girls mean the world to me."

"The feeling is mutual Bos. Thanks for agreeing. You're the closest I've ever had to a father and I can't imagine doing it without you by my side."

"You don't have to worry. I wouldn't miss this."

"Bos give Kris and Julie my love and I'll talk to you soon."

"Bye Kelly and good luck with the case."

Kelly dialed Jim's number at the office, but no one answered. She guessed that he was probably being briefed by Novotny. She would try to reach him again later. When she did, she got Agent Spillane instead of Jim.

"Kelly, he was in briefly this morning, but I haven't seen him in awhile." Spillane explained.

"If he gets in Marty, would you have him call me on my car phone?"

"Sure thing, Kelly. So you ready for tonight?"

"As much as you can be ready for this sort of thing."

"Good, we're going to bust a big one tonight. See you later."

"Bye Marty." Kelly replied hanging up the phone.

Kelly pulled into a parking space not far from Jim's house. She took out a dossier filled with photos and descriptions of most of the group she would be dealing with tonight. Although she had personal contact with almost all of them over the last few months, she wanted to make sure that she was up to date on every aspect of their lives from their convictions, to the type of weapons that they used. She knew that most of the operation centered on Jim's ability to make it happen, but she as his girlfriend would also need to be convincing.

As she was approaching the last file, her phone rang.

"Kelly, Spillane told me that you called, so what's up?" Jim asked his tone suggesting he was in a hurry.

"I was just wondering what you were doing for lunch, I thought maybe we could talk over some strategies for tonight."

"Sweetheart, we've gone over this 6 dozen times, there is point when you can be too well versed in something and then it doesn't feel right. Just go with the flow and things will work out fine. You've been terrific in getting this set-up, you'll be fine tonight." He reassured her.

"You're probably right, but I still wouldn't mind seeing you for lunch." She replied sunnily.

"I would love nothing more, but unfortunately, I just got a call from del Toro, you know the Bull. He is beginning to get nervous, so I've got to get over there and straighten things up before tonight."

"Do you want me to come along?"

"No, I definitely don't want that. I might have to do some more forceful convincing and I don't want you around for that."

"Jim, does anyone else know about this?"

"No, and I'd like it kept that way. I don't want Larry pulling back on me just as we've got them."

"I don't like this. Couldn't you at least take Spillane or Davidson along with you?"

"What you don't think I can handle the Bull alone," he said trying to make a joke of the situation.

"I just don't want you getting hurt and" Kelly was cut off before she could finish.

"Kel, I don't have the time to discuss this, you're going to have to trust my instincts on this one. I've got to go, but I do love you and I promise this will be fine." Jim interrupted her and hung up before she could respond.

Kelly thought about calling Spillane or Davidson, but she knew that Jim would be furious. Jim should have no difficulty in handling del Toro in a fight because for all of his tough sounding moniker he was only about 5' 5" and 140 soaking wet. Still del Toro's skill was in using knives and he had been known to pack the latest in handgun power as well. She decided against reporting this to anyone because if she was going to marry this man, she had to trust his judgment and respect his wishes. Still the decision did not sit easy with her. She grabbed a bite to eat and headed down to the beach house. Normally the languid sounds of the ocean surf relaxed her; however, she would be on edge until Jim came home.

At nearly 7:30 p.m. Jim finally walked through the door. He had a noticeable gash on his left cheek and his whole face seemed puffier than usual.

"I was getting worried, but then you already knew that." Kelly stated firmly as he walked through the door.

"Look at this, we're engaged one day and you're already getting on me." He teased.

"Jim, I'm trying to be serious."

"And Kelly, I'm trying not to be. I'm fine, everything is taken care of and things can continue as planned. Now get that hot leather skirt on and get ready to be the girlfriend of the most feared dude in L.A." He said putting her in a bear hug and then gently kissing her on the top of her head. Just think, after tonight, we'll be able to celebrate our engagement."

Kelly smiled at the thought and nuzzled closely to his chest. "I can already see that you are not going to be the easiest man to live with, but I knew that when I agreed. At least, you'll have someone who can handle you," she kidded.

"Is that so, then let's get down to the restaurant and take these guys down." He said as he loosened the hug.

Kelly headed off to the bedroom to change and when she returned, she was a vision of biker chick chic.

"What no leather skirt?" Jim replied dejectedly as she appeared in the living room.

"We're taking the bike, right? I just didn't want to catch my death of cold, so I decided to go with the leather pants instead. Besides, Mr. Novotny told me that I shouldn't distract you this evening."

"I will have to talk to Larry about that," he said as he embraced her and kissed her passionately.

"He's right, we have a lot of work to do," she said pulling away from him. "We're supposed to meet del Toro at the O'Gara's then we'll see where he leads us. Nothing changed since we talked this morning?"

"No, del Toro will be there. He wouldn't want to make me unhappy."

"Then I guess it is time to roll," Kelly said taking a look at the neon clock behind the bar.

They headed over to O'Gara's and saw that Novotny, Spillane and Davidson had already arrived in a silver Cadillac. Jim roared into the lot with Kelly on the back. She had always loved the feeling of freedom that motorcycles gave her, but tonight she was tense. She just hoped it didn't show. He parked up on the sidewalk and got off the bike, helping Kelly off as they then headed over to the car.

"Hey guys, ready to head inside?" Jim asked after tapping on the window.

Spillane and Davidson got out of the car, one in a suit, the other in a non-descript shirt and jeans. The four stepped into the bar together and Jim headed in del Toro's direction near the back of the bar. Del Toro's hand was bandaged and his face bruised. Kelly didn't want to make the connection to earlier in the day, but she knew who had inflicted those wounds on him. This was definitely an issue she was going to have to address with Jim.

"Hey Mario, it's good to see you again." Jim proclaimed loudly as he moved to the back.

"Yeah is that so? I wish I could say the same."

Jim smirked and sat down beside him, Kelly wedging in beside him. "These are my friends, Mr. Spillane and Mr. Davidson, they are friends of Mr. Green if you know what I mean." Jim replied introducing the other men with him.

"So where is Mr. Green?" del Toro asked as a girl returned from the restroom and sat on his right side.

"He's a busy man, he's outside, and this really isn't his type of establishment." Davidson piped in.

"Well, if he's so busy then why don't we go and pick up the goods and I can get his cash."

"Mario, we just got here, I haven't even had a drink. Lighten up already." Jim said as he seemed to be genuinely relishing his role.

"So why did you bring her along?" del Toro asked nodding in Kelly's direction.

"Same reason, you brought your bitch along, I might feel a little lonesome and I want her close." He said giving Kelly and extra squeeze.

A waitress finally approached and they ordered. She returned a short while later with the drinks.

"Where's your boss, Mario?" Jim asked after downing a shot.

"He's waiting for my phone call. If I get a bad vibe from you then the deal is off."

"But you better be right with that vibe, Mario because if you shut this down your boss is going to be out a lot of money, and I'm going to have to take it out of your hide. Mr. Green wants to entertain and he needs your goods and I stand to make a lot of money by hooking him up. So let's just make everyone real happy tonight." Jim threatened.

"I've had enough of this bullshit; let's get the hell out of here." Del Toro replied getting up. He headed over to the bar where the others followed behind. He got the phone from the bartender and made his call.

"So is it on?" Jim asked after del Toro hung up the phone.

"Yeah but he wants only you, and Green, the broad can come to. These guys," he said looking at Davidson and Spillane, I don't like the looks of them. "If you want the stuff, that's the deal."

"Sure we'll play it your way." Jim agreed. "One of you keep an eye on my bike." Jim looked over at Davidson, as a matter of fact, just take it over Mr. Green's house and I'll pick it up later."

"I'll take it." Davidson offered.

"What am I supposed to do, take a damn cab?" Spillane asked annoyed.

"Marty, why don't you do that, we'll save you some of the goods." Jim snapped.

"So do you want us to follow you, or can we know where we're going?" Jim questioned as they headed to the door.

"You'll follow me."

Jim tossed Davidson the key to the motorcycle and then headed towards the Cadillac, Kelly got in on the passenger's side.

"So how's it going?" Novotny asked from the back "Where are Mike and Marty?"

"Del Toro didn't like their looks, so Marty's taking my bike; he'll contact the tracking car and try to stay nearby. He'll also get one of the dummy cabs over to pick up Mike. As long as the tracker works it won't matter."

"Kel, everything o.k. with you?" Jim asked noticing that she was rather quiet.

"Since I'm just your bitch, I guess I'm just along for the ride." She replied tersely.

"Come on now Kel, I was just playing my part."

"I know Jim, but it doesn't mean I have to like it."

"Well, when you two love birds finish your squabbling, could you let me know what I should be expecting?" It didn't look like del Toro had anyone with him, you sure DeSoto will be there?"

"I can't be positive, but Mario was nervous enough to indicate that he's answering to someone else."

They had followed del Toro a few miles before he turned into the parking lot of a run down warehouse. There were a few neon lights from a couple of bars and there was an apartment building next door in which the sounds of televisions, babies and loud conversations created a cacophony of city sounds. Del Toro got out of the car; the girl with him exited and headed off towards one of the bars. Jim stopped the Caddy and got out. The warehouse looked dark, then a series of lights showed from the back, three cars came up and parked behind the car. Eight men exited from the three cars as they killed the headlights. The odds had switched noticeably in del Toro's favor.

"Hey what's all this?" Jim asked del Toro as he came up to him.

"Don't worry, amigo, I just wanted to make sure that the deal went smoothly. Now could I see the money?"

"I want to see the goods first; I played by your rules to get here, now it's my turn." Jim replied.

Kelly watched the scene knowing that there should be agents nearby, but she still got the feeling that this wasn't going to be as easy or well orchestrated as planned.

"I'll make a compromise with you; let your lady come with me inside to check out the goods. Then I'll send her back out and you can give her the money to bring back to me." Del Toro offered.

"She's just along for the ride, I'll go with you."

"Then I guess we can't do business."

"Let me talk to Mr. Green." Jim said walking back to the car.

"He wants Kelly to go in and check out the goods and then bring back the money. I don't like it." Jim explained to Novotny.

"Let her do it. That's what her job is. She isn't here just for appearances. She's armed. I'll radio the backups when she's almost to the door of the warehouse. They should be in position to block off the streets. Garrett, you're going to have to take care of del Toro and keep him occupied until we can get the situation under control out here, then we'll enter the warehouse."

"And what if there are more of them inside? I can handle one, I'm not sure I can handle a dozen."

"Garrett, there's no one else inside. There isn't a light on, they're not sitting in there in the dark. I don't have time to debate it with you. If you didn't think you could handle the situation, then you shouldn't have agreed to be here, now follow orders."

Kelly glared at him, but opened the door and stepped from the car. She walked over to del Toro and began to walk towards the door without a sound. It seemed to her that things had grown suddenly quiet. She thought of Kris and Julie and Bos and wished she had a few more minutes to talk to each of them, to tell them how important they were to her. She had wished she had been less difficult with Jim tonight. Then she stopped herself from the fatalist thinking and concentrated on what she had to do. Del Toro opened the door and she went in first, it was dark except for moonlight shining on the boxes and pallets. Del Toro entered a utility room and flipped on a series of light switches. The lights flickered on slowly before coming to a full brightness. At least it appeared that Novotny was right; there was no one else inside.

"Come over here," he said walking towards a pallet of cardboard boxes. He pulled out a switchblade and used it to cut the box open. Inside were what looked to be pound bags of a white powder.

"Would you like a sample?" del Toro offered.

"Maybe later, right now I just want to get out of here."

"You know you could do a lot better with me than you could with him." Del Toro said as he passed behind her.

That's when the burst of gunfire began in earnest outside. Kelly spun around nailing del Toro in the face with her elbow, and with a smooth motion, she pulled the gun out from her waistband but couldn't get it on him before he charged her and drove her to the floor. She struggled to get leverage and managed to push him off, but in the meantime lost her grip on the gun. They both scrambled for it, but fortunately Kelly reached it first, she fired a shot as he lunged for her and he fell to the ground, his pant leg staining noticeably with blood. He let out a curse, looked down at his leg and passed out. Kelly ran for the door and saw that the area was covered with numerous cars and the suspects were neutralized. She saw Jim at a short distance and when their eyes met, both grinned happily. Then from the side she heard a shot ring out and hit the ground just before her feet. Jim spun around to the direction of the shot and fired. He heard the thud of someone hit the ground. Kelly ran over to see the girl from the bar, now dead.

"Are you o.k.?" Jim said running up beside her.

"I'm fine and you?"

"Perfect, I was just so worried when you were inside. I thought I'd go crazy sitting out here. Then everything just sort of happened and I've never seen anything so beautiful as you walking out that door. I never saw her though." He said pointing to the dead woman on the ground, and then he took Kelly in his arms for just a moment.

"Let's get this finished up and get home, del Toro is wounded inside." Kelly said a little unnerved from the close call with the bullet.

Jim went back to the suspects and was talking with the police when Kelly saw Novotny come up to him. They went inside the building where the paramedics were now heading. She walked over to Marty and they talked a short while as things began to calm down. Spectators were now starting to crowd around and Kelly watched as the paramedics brought del Toro out of the warehouse. She left Marty and headed inside the warehouse where she saw Jim and Novotny talking. Now that the paramedics had left, it was only the two men amongst the numerous cardboard boxes.

"Hey Garrett, let me see your gun. I've got to check and see how many rounds you fired since you wounded a suspect." Novotny said holding out his hand as Jim remained silent by his side. Kelly grinned slyly at Jim, but he avoided her gaze.

"Sure," Kelly said as she handed Novotny the gun.

What transpired next was a horror that Kelly couldn't have imagined. Novotny took the gun and turned without hesitation and fired two rounds into Jim Fischer's chest. He crumpled to the floor and Kelly froze staring in disbelief at Novotny. Her survival instincts were triggered and Kelly reacted by taking out Novotny's legs out from under him with a short compact kick. Then she took off running, heading for the back of the warehouse, weaving from side to side to vary her running pattern. Realizing that the gun shots would bring in more agents and that the place was surrounded, Kelly deduced that the only possible means of escape was up. She pulled herself up on top of a crate and then headed over to a cat walk before finding a ladder. Novotny had regained his footing and was now close behind in pursuit. He fired twice at her, the first shot just missing above her, the second grazed her arm tearing the leather on her jacket and stinging the area above her right elbow. By slowing down to take aim Novotny's attempts at shooting her actually worked to her advantage, allowing her to put more distance between them. The ladder continued up leading to the exit to the roof. Kelly looked around and headed for the edge of the roof. It would be a long jump to make it from one roof to the next, but it was her only chance. Kelly remembered that about a year earlier a suspect she was investigating in some Taxi tamperings had also tried to jump between roofs only to have fallen to his death. Kelly ran full speed refusing to allow herself to think about failure. When she reached the edge of the roof, she launched herself with all her strength and landed hard across the asphalt roof of the next building. Her heart was pounding and she could hardly get enough air, still she picked herself up and headed for the fire escape towards the other side of the building. She hurried down the first flight of steps and then noticed an open window. She peered inside and saw no one. Apparently the current residents were not home. She popped open the screen and slid into the dark room. She opened the door that led into the hallway and continued down the stairs until she reached the ground level. She could hear voices outside but she didn't see anyone nearby. She was on the back side of the building away from where all the action was taking place. She took a chance and headed outside. She crossed the street and continued walking rapidly. Darkness was her ally and she prayed that she would be able to distance herself from the area. She headed up to the next block and began to run again. The night was now quiet and each step she took seemed to pound like a drum against the pavement. The occasional siren could be heard in the distance, and her instincts continued to tell her to flee. Having distanced herself from the scene by at least a half mile, Kelly stopped beside a building and took a break. For the first time, she had a moment to take in what happened and her heart sank. She thought of Jim and how the day had begun. His sincere proposal and the incredible happiness that she felt were as vivid as her mind as the horror that came later. She saw Novotny's cold stare as he fired her gun so callously. Why, was the question that refused to be answered. She slid to the ground and began to cry quietly. She was completely alone with no idea what to do. Both Charlie's office and her house would be off limits. She couldn't even take a chance at calling Kris, Bos, or Julie. She got up again and began to walk slowly staying close to the buildings in the area, still no real idea of where she was heading.

Then Kelly heard the sound of a train. It was exiting a shoe factory and had just begun to pull out. She had no better idea as to where to go, maybe the train would be a good place to start. She had jumped trains as a teen and this one hadn't really picked up much speed. She noticed a car that was slightly opened and headed for it. She slid the door open slightly and squeezed in. It turned out to be an empty car and she sat down looking out the small slit in the door watching the city blur by as the train picked up speed. It moved for maybe a half an hour before it reached its next destination.

As the train began to slow down, Kelly hopped off hoping that no one noticed her. It was still dark and she had been near the middle of the train, a good location she figured as it was both away from the caboose and the engine. Taking her first few steps as she hit the ground, she realized just how stiff her muscles had become. Her arms felt like rubber and her legs tingled, still she headed down the embankment to a secluded, woodsy area. She watched and listened trying to hear what the men were saying as they walked beside the train, but could only hear them when they shouted to one another. After a few minutes the train again lurched forward and she observed as they moved the full box cars into the warehouse, and hooked up other ones to the train. The trainman who had been riding in the caboose walked along and checked each of the new cars to see if they were all locked. All checked out but one. Seeing this, Kelly guessed that her time for riding the rails was not over for the evening. She waited until she saw the trainman hop into the caboose and then she made a break for the unlocked train car. Sliding the door just wide enough for her to squeeze in, she pulled herself up with her arms and tumbled forward into the car. She was surrounded by many large cardboard boxes. She slid the door closed as quietly as she could, not knowing what would happen if her luck didn't hold out and they found her on the train. She sat down and waited aware of each second that passed. Her heart was beating rapidly, and her nerves were on edge. She was finding it hard to concentrate because her mind flashed from one incident to the next. Apparently, the previous stop had been the last one of the night as the train now barreled into the countryside. Kelly sat and watched the darkness, moonlight would cast shadows periodically within the car and it continued for sometime before Kelly saw the first rays of sunlight filter into the car as morning twilight began. She looked through the opening of the door and could tell by the sunrise that the train was heading east. The train continued to rumble along, its consistent rhythm slowly calming Kelly's nerves and she even found herself dozing off for brief moments.

Hours passed on the train and still it kept going without a stop. Then around noon, the train began to slow and Kelly was jarred awake. The sun burned brightly through the slats and the car heated up noticeably. She peered through the small opening and could see houses and then factories coming up. She thought about getting off the train but in broad daylight, she would be noticed. If they switched the car she was in she would have to figure out another plan on the fly. Instead since the car was near the middle of the train, she guessed that it would continue on for awhile longer. The trained stopped as she heard the clanging of metal and the movement of the cars. Cars were being put on a separate set of tracks and removed from the back of the train. Kelly waited anxiously as they crept ever closer to the car that she was in. Ultimately, Kelly's decision paid off. No further cars were added to the train but no additional ones were removed. Kelly figured that the next train stop would be her final destination at least until she came up with some sort of plan.

The car continued to heat up throughout the day and Kelly even dared to push the door open just a bit more so she could feel the breeze created by the train's movement. She was hungry, her head ached and although not really sleepy, she felt unable to concentrate. What a difference a day made. She had been so happy the day before and now she was riding in a box car somewhere in Arizona, she guessed, wondering how she was going to get out of this one. She stared down at her ring and saw Jim so handsome and beaming when he gave it to her. Then she saw his face twisted in pain as the first and the second shot entered him. Overwhelming sadness seemed to wash over her and she wept as she hadn't done since she was a child.

Twilight began to fall and with that a welcome cooling in the car. Kelly collected her thoughts and tried to figure out what she would do when she got off of the train. Food was a definite priority, she wasn't sure if finding a room would be a mistake or not. She had $200 cash on her and a credit card, but the card would be useless. As soon as it would be used, Novotny would have the area swarming with agents. She could also pawn her ring if she needed more cash. She wished that she could call her friends, but she realized that in this instance she was truly alone.

The train began to slow up and it was closer to being dark than light outside, when she opened up the car door and jumped off. She landed roughly but could see that she was near a town. She headed down and embankment which took her to the road, which she followed into town. It had been about a half mile walk when she read the sign welcoming her to Roswell, New Mexico. "Great," thought Kelly, "that's all I need to deal with aliens. On second thought, I wouldn't mind being abducted by the mother ship."

She walked along the paved road into town, the lights dimmed in most shops, but a neon sign brightening up the windows here and there. She walked passed the courthouse and noticed a large bronze statue across the street. It was of a man on horseback with a large bull beside him. As Kelly approached she read the name, John Simpson Chisum. Kelly was not familiar with Mr. Chisum but she had to admit that his statue was impressive. She continued to walk down the street till she spied a bar. It looked like every other neighborhood bar that she had ever been in, but at least from the window it didn't appear to be too crowded.

Kelly entered the bar and looked for the restroom. She passed two burly Hispanic guys sitting on stools talking animatedly in Spanish while a shorter light haired guy sat on the last bar stool. She used the facilities and splashed some water on her face realizing that this was not one of her most attractive moments. Still the bar seemed lacking in females so she probably could still get some attention. She walked back inside the bar and saw two guys shooting pool in the back; she headed in their direction and slid into a booth not far from the table. A waitress came by and took her order, cheeseburger, fries and a Margarita. Kelly sat back watching the table intently noticing that one player was obviously better than the other. She caught the eye of the poorer player and he winked at her. She smiled brightly at him as the waitress returned with her drink. Taking her first sip, she realized just how thirsty she had been. The drink was strong, but the crushed ice and the citrus flavor were refreshing. She continued to sip the drink slowly, never taking her eyes of the pool player. How she hated this faux seduction. A pang of guilt struck her as the billiard match finished and the guy headed towards her. 'Yesterday', she thought and then stopped herself.

"Hello, I've never seen you around here."

"That's probably because I've never been around here." She replied in a low seductive voice.

"I'm Marshall Waters, would you mind if I sat down?"

"So is Marshall your name or your job?" She asked as she indicated that he could sit.

"Well ma'am, I'm not the law in these parts if that's what you're asking," his voice taking on a phony cowboy tone.

Kelly smiled sweetly at him," I'm Katherine Jones," but my friends call me K.C. My daddy loved trains, you see."

"K.C. Jones, that's cute" He said as the waitress came up to them and dropped off Kelly's order.

"Connie would get me the same, but with a Bud to wash it down."

The waitress nodded and headed back towards the kitchen.

"So what brings you to Roswell, come to see our famous aliens?"

"Just passing through town," She said taking a bite of the burger. "You won't mind my impoliteness; I just haven't had much to eat today.

"No problem, I interrupted you. So where are you heading?"

"I'm going to Texas; I'm going to surprise my folks." She replied as she munched on her fries.

"I thought I detected a little Texas drawl, I was born in Lubbock, but my family moved here when I was 5, so I've lost most of my accent. Where's home for you now?"

"Your friend looks a little lonely over there," Kelly said noticing the lone billiard player chalking his cue repeatedly."

"That's my brother, Owen, he's a damn good pool player, but has a lousy disposition. He didn't think I had much of a chance when I came over here, but what does he know?"

"Maybe he knows more than me, is there some reason I shouldn't give you a chance?"

"Now if there was, do you think that I would blow the chance to be in your company by telling you?" He replied good naturedly.

Marshall was actually turning out to be nicer than she really could have expected. His food arrived and they both spent more time chewing than talking. Owen finally walked over and told Marshall he was leaving. Kelly asked him to join them, but Owen knew his brother wasn't going to want additional company.

"I know this isn't my business, but I noticed you have on a ring. Are you married?" Marshall asked hesitantly.

"No," Kelly answered quietly. "I was engaged but we've broken it off. You see I was traveling with my fiancée to tell my parents when we got into a fight. He left me off here and headed back to California. Now I'm stranded halfway between here and there with not much cash. You don't happen to know where the pawn shop in town is? I don't really want the ring anymore and I could use the cash to get to my folks." She explained.

"Actually, I do, my uncle owns it. It won't be open until tomorrow morning. I could show you then. Do you have somewhere to stay? You can stay with me if you like."

Kelly laughed quietly, "No Marshall, I may be down on my luck, but I'm afraid I'm not that kind of girl."

"Oh, um, no, I didn't mean like that. I mean I would have liked that, but actually Owen and I live upstairs from my parents. You could stay with my mom and dad and my little sister. They have a guest room."

"That's really very nice of you, but are you sure that your parents wouldn't mind?"

"I'm sure, but I'll give them a call, you can talk to my mom if you like."

"No, I believe you. You want to shoot a game of pool before we go." Kelly said taking the money out from her pocket to pay the waitress.

"This is on me," Marshall said indicating that she should put the money away. "Sure a game of pool sounds like fun."

"Do you want to make a wager?" She said as they headed towards the table.

"You are low on cash and you want to bet on a game?"

"Well, if you don't think you can beat me, that's fine. I just thought since your brother was good, you might be as well. Guess I was wrong." She said her tone meant to egg him on.

"I just don't want to take your money."

"Guys just can't accept that they can be beat by a girl."

"Fine, Miss K.C. Jones, I'm going to show you a thing or to about shooting pool."

"How does $20.00 sound?"

"I will take your money, don't think I won't." He said trying to dissuade her from making the bet.

"Then it's a bet." She said taking a cue from the rack. "Who goes first?"

"Ladies first, of course."

Kelly took a spot on the other side of the table as Marshall racked up the balls. "Straight pool or a variation."

"How about 8 ball?" He suggested

"Sounds good," Kelly said as she lined up the shot and broke sinking a striped ball.

"Beginners luck," he said as she called her next shot, the cue ball hit squarely in the 10 ball, but then careened into a solid and sank that into the pocket.

"Now watch as a master takes over."

Marshall called and sank each of his next four shots even impressively doing a trick shot. Then he went for a more difficult shot than he had to and missed. Kelly took over and never missed again, finally sinking the 8 ball.

"Double or nothing?" she asked. "This time I've got nothing to lose so you won't have to feel bad if you beat me."

"So you saw through my ruse and knew that I was just taking it easy on you." He said as a wide grin formed on his face.

"You break," she said rolling the cue ball towards him and racking the rest of the balls.

He set about doing so and the balls careened all over the table but not a single one fell in the pocket. This time Kelly took over and never gave Marshall another chance, running the table. All those games with Jill had paid off.

"Care to go for three's a charm," She said smiling slyly at him.

"No, there comes a time when you have to learn your lesson, I didn't learn mine after the first one, but you're not going to get me again. Here's your forty before I get myself in debt. Besides, we really should be heading over to my parent's; they'll be going to heading to bed soon."

Kelly headed out of the bar with Marshall to the surprised looks of the other patrons. She wasn't surprised that he was driving an old Ford pick up, but was glad for his kindness. At least, she could get some rest and hopefully the morning would bring clearer thoughts.

She met Marshall's mom who was warm and inviting offering to fix something for her to eat but Kelly declined explaining that she had just eaten at the bar. His dad was indifferent but in a Ward Cleaver kind of way. She got the impression that Marshall got his mom's jovial nature and Owen was more like his father. Jenny, his little sister was a pretty girl with large doe-like brown eyes. She wasn't shy and it was obvious that she and Marshall were close. After chit chatting for awhile, Marshall's parents took Jenny off to bed, and said their goodnights. Marshall remained for awhile longer and they discussed going to the pawn shop the next morning. He showed her to her room which was on the main floor of the house.

"Good night, I'll see you in the morning." He said as he turned to leave.

Kelly hesitated for a moment but then called him back. She gave him a peck on the cheek and thanked him for being so nice.

Marshall smiled broadly and headed down the hall.

Kelly's sleep was broken; she kept waking to thoughts of the previous day's nightmare. Sometimes she would wake and forget where she was, having to reorient herself to her current environment. She woke up early about 6:30, but found that she was not the first one up. Marshall's mom was already dressed and making breakfast.

"Good morning," Kelly said feeling awkward.

"Good morning," his mom replied. "If you want any hot water, now is probably the best time to take your shower, otherwise Jenny will use it all up."

"Thanks a shower sound really good right now. I promise, I'll be quick."

Kelly took a quick shower, but the water felt wonderful. It seemed to help clear her mind and she finally felt like she could think clearly. She returned to the kitchen following her shower to discover that Owen and Marshall had already arrived downstairs and that breakfast was in full swing.

"How did you sleep?" Marshall asked between bites of egg.

"Pretty good. Thanks for asking."

"We only have one rule here, and that's everyone who is under our roof is a friend or relative so don't expect service. Grab your plate and take what you like." Marshall's mom explained warmly.

Kelly took a plate and added some eggs and fresh fruit, then poured herself a glass of orange juice. Eventually, Marshall's dad and Jenny joined the rest. When breakfast was over, Kelly offered to help with the dishes and the offer was accepted. Marshall helped out as well, and then he offered to drive Kelly over to the pawn shop. Marshall's dad had left for work and Jenny for school, Kelly wasn't sure where Owen had gone when Marshall went to get the car.

"Thanks for your hospitality," she said to his mom, I won't forget your kindness.

"That's all right K.C. it was lovely to have you here. I hope you'll stop back on your way home from Texas."

"I might do that." Kelly replied as she made her way to the door.

Marshall had the pick up truck waiting as he got out and opened the door for her. They headed off to the pawn shop which was just a short drive away. It was only 8:30 when they arrived at the shop and the sign indicated that they opened at 9:00, but Marshall went around back and came back with an older gentleman dressed in buckskin from head to toe.

"K.C. this is my Uncle Vincent."

"Pleased to meet you," the man said holding his hand out to Kelly.

"Nice to meet you as well."

"Marshall says that you have a ring, you might want me to take off your hands. It's not often that he comes by with such a pretty girl."

Kelly smiled, "Thank you, yes I have an engagement ring I'm trying to sell.

"Well, that's primarily what I deal in, so let me see what you've got."

Kelly slipped the ring off, a chill running down her spine as she did so.

"It is in excellent condition, nice setting, let me get my glass and I'll take a look at the diamonds."

He pulled out the eye piece and looked at the diamonds. "Yes, these are very nice. I could probably give you store credit of $400 or $250 cash."

Kelly was somewhat disappointed at the sum, but she didn't have much choice now. If this situation ever resolved itself, she could come back and get the ring. She needed cash and couldn't afford to be choosy.

"I'll take the cash." She said downcast. "I'm afraid I don't need anything in your shop right now."

"Marshall said that you might be looking to find yourself some wheels. I just took a car a little over a week ago. I've been tooling around in it myself, but I don't really need it. It's a Dodge Charger about a 1970 or so. I'll give you the car and $100 for the ring."

Kelly looked to Marshall hoping to get some sort of feedback on the car.

"Could I see the car?"

"Sure, let me take you out back."

They walked around back and Kelly saw a car that had seen better days. It was a little rusted and a few dings and scratches. It was white which would be good in the heat. Kelly popped open the hood and looked at the engine. Uncle Vincent offered to let her test drive it and he gave her the keys. It started up without any hesitation. Kelly took a short spin around the block and when she returned she decided to take him up on his offer. Explaining that she had no i.d. she asked him to keep the car in his name until she could get replacements. Uncle Vincent having dealt in far more shady situations was willing to go along just as long as she contacted him with the information as soon as she could. After a few moments of small talk with Uncle Vincent, Kelly said goodbye and walked out to the car with Marshall.

Feeling a sense of urgency to get on her way, but yet not wanting to seem impatient, Kelly was at a loss for words.

"Thank you," she said to Marshall as he opened her car door for her. "I really owe you one."

"No, you don't owe me anything. Just leaving the bar last night with you on my arm was enough to give my reputation a boost. I don't know what that fella of yours was so angry about that he could have left you on your own, but he's really a fool."

Kelly smiled but tried not to meet his earnest gaze. "Marshall Waters, you're too good of a guy for me. Some girl is going to be very lucky to get you. I'll never forget all your help and some day if I ever get back to these parts, I'll stop by and see how you're doing."

"I'll look forward to that day. I shouldn't keep you, and I've got to get to work myself. Goodbye, K.C."

"Goodbye Marshall," she said as she gave him a hug and a peck on the cheek and then quickly got in the car and started on her way.

She found the highway not far out of town and checked the glove compartment and was happy to discover a small folded map of the southwest. She plotted her course and cruised the open road, grateful that the car had a nearly full tank of gas when she received it. Three hours into her journey, she stopped for gas, and a restroom break. She also got ten dollars from the clerk to use the payphone. Then she dialed the number of the one person that she could trust that the F.B.I. probably wouldn't anticipate, at least not by this time. 

The phone rang and was answered before a second tone sounded, "Hello, St. Agnes convent," an elderly female voice answered.

"Could I speak with Sr. Anne Garrett?" Kelly asked politely.

"May I ask who's calling?"

"Just tell her, Kelly." She replied hoping that would satisfy her and she wouldn't want further details.

"Just a moment," the nun replied putting down the phone.

Kelly was hoping for speed as her long distance minutes on the phone would be chewed up quickly. Lucky for her nuns tend to be efficient and Sr. Anne came to the phone in less than a minute.

"Hello," she said her voice amiable.

"Sr. Anne, this is Kelly, how are you?"

"I'm doing well, Kelly and you?"

"Actually Sister, I'm in a bit of a jam and was just wondering if I could come in and see you at the convent. I've just crossed into Texas from New Mexico and I thought I might stop by. I need some advice and you always seem to have the answers.

"The nun chuckled a bit, "I wish I had the answers Kelly, but you are always welcome here. Will you be staying the night?"

"Sister, I would like to do that, but I'm not sure."

"Does this relate to your work?"

"In a way it does, I was engaged to a man who was killed, I've been framed for his murder by a man who works for the F.B.I. I can't speak to my colleagues because I'm sure they're being watched. You're the only one that I can turn to."

"Kelly, I'm so sorry for you, you should come here. We will find a place to keep you safe. Now don't worry and put your trust in God. I'll see you shortly."

"Thank you sister, I'm on my way."

"Drive safely."

Kelly hung up the phone and headed back towards the highway, it was nearly noon and the sun was beating down mightily on the car. Air conditioning would have been welcome, but at least the windows supplied a steady breeze and the traffic had been light. Another four hours and she should be at the convent.

Kelly stood at the gate staring at the imposing structure. It was Spanish architecture and it conjured up both fond and terrible memories for her. Sr. Anne had sounded so warm and welcoming on the phone, but now Kelly wondered if she was taking an unnecessary risk. She may even be putting the nuns and the children at risk by coming here. Still she needed to tell someone her side of the story; she needed counsel, and most of all she needed someone she could trust. Kelly opened the gate and walked inside. A few nuns were tending a garden and trimming trees alongside a few of their young charges. Kelly continued to walk further into the campus when she recognized a couple of older nuns sitting on a bench together. Kelly recalled that the first one was Sr. Mary Theresa who had been her 5th or was it 6th grade math teacher. A most patient woman, Kelly recalled although she still remembered hating math. The other nun was Sr. Martha who was a substitute teacher, but Kelly remembered her mostly as the cook. Sr. Martha had been an adequate cook most days. Kelly didn't recall much about Sr. Martha's cuisine, but she did remember her birthday cakes. Sr. Martha's birthday cakes were heavenly. They were light and fluffy with just the right amount of flavorings and sweetness. The icing was the equal of the cake and Kelly recalled that Sr. Martha never failed to ask each child what their favorite was before their special day.

"Hello Sisters," Kelly greeted the nuns when it became obvious that they had recognized her.

"Kelly, how are you?" Sr. Mary Theresa was the first to respond.

"I've had better weeks, but I'm muddling through." She said a little hesitantly.

"It's good to see you," Sr. Martha chimed in. "Sr. Anne is so good at keeping us aware of what is happening in our former students' lives. You seem to living a very exciting life. I always knew the Lord would use you to do great good in the world."

Kelly smiled uncomfortably, "Could you tell me where I might find Sr. Anne?"

"It's about 4:00 p.m., Sr. Mary Theresa said looking at her watch, she should be in her office. It's in the same location as when you were here. Do you recall or would you like me to show you?" She offered good-naturedly.

"No, I remember. Thank you of your help. It was good seeing you both again."

Kelly walked down to the end of the building and entered through the back door. Sr. Anne's office was directly to the left as she walked in to the dimly lit hall. She knocked tentatively at the door. She felt like she was going to the principal's office and the delay although only a few seconds ratcheted up Kelly's discomfort.

"Come in," A pleasant voice from the other side of the door responded.

Kelly opened the door and Sr. Anne was coming towards her. She hugged her warmly and all of Kelly's uncertainty faded away.

"You look wonderful which considering all that you've been through is saying something. I'm glad that you called me." Sr. Anne said in a supportive tone.

"I am too, although this is something that I wish I didn't have to burden you with." Kelly responded sincerely.

"Kelly the only burden that I have is the one that the Lord has given me and remember what He said. 'Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.' Put yourself in God's hands, Kelly and He will take care of you."

"Sister, I've got to unburden myself by letting someone know the truth, but I may never get the opportunity with the way things have been going. Will you hear me out?"

"Yes Kelly, of course," She replied reassuringly.

"The man that I am being accused of killing was named Jim Fischer. He was an F.B.I. agent and he was my fiancé. We were working on a case involving the shipment of illegal drugs into the country. The night of his death, a shipment of drugs was being brought into L.A. and Jim had uncovered the location as it turned out as well as finding out that the main drug lord would actually be at the drop.. Everything went as planned except that Diego Desoto, the man we were after wasn't there We did gind the drug shipment and arrested numerous participants but we missed the big fish we were after. Then as most of the agents were busy taking the suspects into custody, I went inside the warehouse to check on Jim and see what he wanted to do after it was all over. He was standing with our supervisor, a man named Larry Novotny. When I approached, Novotny asked to see my gun to verify how many rounds I had fired." Kelly paused trying to regain her composure. "I gave him the gun and without hesitating he shot Jim in the chest twice. My first instinct was to run over to Jim, but then I realized that there was nothing I could do, so I managed to knock Novotny to the ground and then I fled. A long train ride, a little assistance from a kind family in New Mexico and here I am."

"Kelly, I'm so sorry for you. Whatever you need me to do, I will help in any way that I can." Sr. Anne said putting a comforting arm around her shoulder.

"You've already helped; just knowing that I'm not the only one who knows what really happened has lifted a burden off of me. Sister, I would also appreciate it, if you could contact a friend of mine. Her name is Sabrina Duncan." Kelly said as she scribbled the name down on a pad of paper on Sr. Anne's desk. I'm really not sure what my plans are but I was wondering if I could possibly stay the night here."

"Kelly I thought about this a bit and I don't think that having you here is a good idea for either us or you, but I do have an idea."

"I'm sorry you're right, I have no right to endanger anyone. I don't know how deep the F.B.I. is going to look for me. They may find out that I lived here as a child and look for me. It could put others in danger. Novotny is crooked but no one inside the agency knows that."

"I have already contacted Fr. Tim. He is waiting for you over at the school. We've come up with what I think is a safe place for you. Fr. Tim is a great guy and he will take you to a comfortable location. You're not our first stowaway. I will try to contact your friend and I will let Tim know as soon as I do. Do you remember how to get to the school through the tunnel?"

"Yes, I remember."

"Then that is where you should be heading. I will call Fr. Tim and have him head downstairs to meet you. I am so sorry that this has happened to you, Kelly, but have faith. Everything happens for a reason. God's speed." She said as she patted Kelly on the shoulder and walked her to the door.

"Thank you for everything, Sister. If there is any way I can ever repay you just name it." Kelly said as she headed down the hall to the staircase.

Kelly walked past a few young girls who were giggling and whispering over their books. It was like a time warp being there. The school uniforms were exactly the same. The paintings and statues in the hall hadn't changed either. In her thoughts the Beatles song, _In my Life_, came to my mind. "There are places I remember all my life, though some have changed, some forever, not for better, some have gone and some remain. All these places had their moments, with lovers and friends I still can recall, some are dead and some are living, in my life I've loved them all." Kelly hurried down the stairs and came to the large wooden door pulled it open and entered the tunnel. She remembered how heavy the door had seemed when she was a kid. The tunnel had usually been off limits to students but occasionally one of the nuns would take a student between the orphanage and school particularly if the weather had been inclement. Kelly arrived at the other end of the tunnel and opened the door into the basement of a school building. She entered a long corridor and saw signs indicating that the gym was to the right and the cafeteria to the left just as she recalled. The school was quiet except for the distant sound of voices coming from the direction of the gym. She heard footsteps coming down the staircase and she waited. Hopefully this was Fr. Tim bounding down the stairs. When the light rumble from the stairs stopped, she could hear the squeaky shoes on the tile floor coming towards her.

"Hi, you must be Kelly." The priest spoke warmly with a hint of a Texas drawl.

"Yes, and you must be Fr. Tim."

"Was it the collar that gave me away?" He asked jokingly.

"That and the fact that Sr. Anne said I was to meet a Fr. Tim over here."

Fr. Tim was a handsome, wiry fellow with a pleasant smile, green eyes, and dark brown hair which he kept neatly trimmed. He had a bit of a five o'clock shadow and was neatly dressed in a short sleeve black shirt with Roman collar and black pants.

"From what I gather, it is probably not a good idea for us to delay our departure, your carriage awaits upstairs." He said pointing to the staircase to the right.

"My carriage, this should be interesting." Kelly mumbled as she headed towards the staircase.

When they arrived on the first floor he led her in the opposite direction towards the front of the school.

"Hop on," he said as he opened the door to a waiting school bus.

"Interesting carriage, I wasn't quite expecting this." Kelly commented.

"Well, let's hope that the F.B.I. is not expecting it either, it was Sr. Anne's idea."

"So how much did Sr. Anne tell you about all of this?" Kelly asked cautiously.

"Let's see, she said that you were accused of killing your fiancé who was an F.B.I. agent but that you claim it was another F.B.I. agent who killed him with your gun thus framing you. He tried to kill you and is now pursuing you either to bring you to justice or to make sure that your side of the story is never heard. Does that pretty much sum it up?"

"Yeah, pretty much." Kelly acknowledged. "So why are you going along with helping me when it obviously isn't all that clear cut?"

"Because Sr. Anne believes your story and that's good enough for me. She thinks you're innocent and she obviously thinks very highly of you. Besides the current situation that you're in, she also told me about some of your other exploits and they were far less shady." He said with a laugh.

"How long have you known Sr. Anne?" Kelly asked.

"All my life, she's my aunt."

"I guess she had some influence on you." Kelly replied trying to make conversation.

"She did have some influence on me. My dad wasn't a particularly spiritual man so I guess she picked up the slack. She was my godmother and took the job very seriously.

"So is Sr. Anne, your mother's sister or your father's?" Kelly asked genuinely interested.

"She's my mom's sister."

"I bet your parents are very proud of you. Most Catholic families consider it quite an honor to have a priest in the family. Yours is doubly lucky to have a nun as well."

"My dad wasn't really crazy about the idea, but at least he acknowledged that it was a fairly safe line of work. As he pointed out, people always want to get married and have babies baptized, not to mention the whole funeral business. By the time he passed away, he had begun to come around to the idea a bit more. My mom died when I was just over a year old so I didn't get to really know her that well. I guess that's why I gravitated so much towards my aunt."

"I'm sorry to hear about your parents. I know how hard it is to be without them."

"My aunt told me that you were once a student at the school and that you lived at the orphanage for awhile."

"Not necessarily the best time of my life, but Sr. Anne was very good to me. I spent most of my teens in foster homes, mostly being a holy terror."

"Now it comes out, my aunt tried to tell me that you were this quiet, well behaved young lady when you were under her care and now you tell me that you terrorized people." He chided mockingly.

"I was good while I was here; I guess I just let loose when I hit my teens. So where are we heading?"

"We're going to the retreat house, you're in luck, we have no retreats scheduled for the weekend. If it's o.k. with you I will stay the night and drive back into town tomorrow for confessions in the afternoon. Then I will be back for the continuation of our backgammon tournament on Saturday night, followed by an early departure on Sunday for Masses and then things gets murky."

"Backgammon tournament?" Kelly asked confused.

"We're going to need to do something over the next few days and there isn't much to do at the retreat house, so I thought we'd play backgammon."

"I guess that makes sense in some universe." Kelly teased.

"I've got to try and figure out a way to contact my friends without tipping off the F.B.I. and I really hadn't planned on staying the weekend here. I was just hoping that I could get a shower and a good night's sleep in a safe place."

"The accommodations are not 5 star but I think you'll be safe and you'll be happy to know that we got the hot water fixed so the shower should be a go as well. Besides who's going to look for you at an all male retreat house?" He replied with a grin.

Kelly just rolled her eyes and shook her head. This whole scenario just kept getting weirder by the minute.

They pulled up in front of a large brick edifice with ivy clinging to one side. Kelly thought the building would not look out of place on the east coast, but didn't quite fit in typical Texas architecture except for its large size. After all wasn't everything in Texas bigger.

I'd offer to take your bags, but you seem to be traveling light," Father Tim said as he headed down the stairs of the bus, and then offered Kelly assistance in disembarking. "Fortunately, you should find the necessary grooming essentials and if you are lucky perhaps even a change of clothes."

"Forgive me Father, but I thought you said this was a men's only retreat house?" She asked with mirthful hesitancy.

"Be careful when you start a sentence out with 'forgive me father,'" He said laughing. "I did say it was for men only but every now and then one of the men might find something else a little more comfortable so we make a variety of things available to them." He replied without a trace of insincerity.

Kelly stood still for a moment, mouth agape as she tried to read his face. She wasn't sure if she should take him seriously, but then he could no longer compose himself and grinned widely saying, "I had you going there for a minute, didn't I?"

"Fr. Tim, I bet your homilies are very entertaining." Kelly commented as they entered the house.

"Actually part of what I said was true, there are some women's clothes in the closet of the last bedroom on the second floor. They are mostly donations. Sometimes part of the retreat experience is service to the poor and sorting clothes is part of that. Luckily for you, we haven't had a pick up of clothes for a few weeks so there should be an abundance of bell bottom jeans for your choosing."

"Beggars can't be choosers; I do want to thank you for all your help. You're really going out on a limb for me."

"They usually don't throw the book at priests even if they are harboring fugitives." He deadpanned.

"Are you ever serious?"

"Usually at funerals, when I'm coaching football, and when I'd get in trouble if I wasn't serious." He responded.

"I see, so are you a good football coach?"

"Terrible, that's why I have to take it so seriously, if I was any good I could probably joke around, but my team has only won two games in the past three years. I'm sorry; I will cut the comic act. I bet you are exhausted. Let me show you your room."

He led her up a dark mahogany staircase to the second floor and led her to the room at the end of the hall. The room was bright compared to the rest of the house. It was painted in a soft taupe, but the real beauty came from its surroundings. There were six large windows that overlooked an orchard. The trees were nearly all in full bloom and the air was perfumed with a soft floral fragrance.

"This is lovely; I can see why someone would want to come here for a retreat. Why don't you make it available to the ladies?" Kelly commented.

"That's a good question and there is a story behind it. This building had been a monastery before it became a retreat house. The monks were in declining numbers and had another monastery near San Antonio that they could combine with. They decided to sell the property to the diocese at a very fair price. The one condition that the monks stipulated in the contract was that the building only be used for men. I have no idea why they made the demand, but then it isn't for me to question them."

"So does this mean that I'm going to be haunted by the ghost of some monk who doesn't like women sleeping in his monastery?" Kelly asked drolly.

"I think he'll make an exception. By the way, you have your own bath off to the side here and the closet in the corner is where you can select your wardrobe. Any questions before I give you some time to yourself?"

"No, this is terrific, I think I'll take a shower and then if it wouldn't be too rude, I might take a short nap."

"You can do whatever you like; this is meant to help you get your freedom, not to imprison you. Any requests for dinner?"

"What are my options?"

"Frozen pizza, hot dogs, hamburgers, and tripe that was left over from the Italian festival."

"Yum, tripe." Kelly said as she made a face. "I don't really think I'm up to that, how about the hamburger."

"A good choice, I may even be able to find some fries to go with it, but I'm not making any promises. I'll see you in a little while; enjoy the shower and your nap." He said as he exited the room and headed down the hallway. As he headed down the hall he thought about what his aunt had told him earlier in the day. "Her boss refers to her as an angel." The priest thought how appropriate that was.

After showering, Kelly lay on the bed and almost instantly fell into a deep sleep. Nearly three hours had passed when she awoke. Groggily, she headed downstairs and found the priest busily chopping away at salad greens.

"I thought we were having hamburgers and fries?" She questioned.

"We are, but you need to have your veggies as well."

"So where did you find the salad fixins?" Kelly questioned realizing a bit of her Texas drawl was returning.

"We have a garden out back." The priest replied.

"But it's spring, nothing would be that far along." She said pointing to the massive head of lettuce that he was slicing.

"You are a good detective," emphasis on the 'are'.

"I thought priests weren't supposed to lie."

"I didn't really lie technically. We do have a garden out back; this just didn't come from it. It came from the grocery store.

"You went to the grocery store in the school bus?"

"Yeah, it's just down the street a ways. I tried to tell you, but you were out like you just took a right hook from George Foreman."

He continued preparing dinner after waving off Kelly's attempts to help. She headed into the large common room where the table was lined with magazines. The choice of titles was not surprising considering where she was at. There were copies of the St. Anthony Messenger, The Fatima Crusader, U.S. Catholic, and an intriguing catalog showing the latest in priest fashion. There were literally dozens of photos of men in black pants, black shirts and Roman collars with nary a difference. Then she reached the end of the section that featured someone in the very daring shirt color choices of white and gray. The next section featured cassocks, and then went on to vestments, and finally altar cloths and other church linens.

"Enjoying the reading material," he said as he carried out the bowl of salad to the large table just outside the kitchen.

"I never realized there was such variety in your work attire." Kelly said as he set the magazine back on the table.

"I bet you didn't know that there was a priest Vogue?"

"No, I can't say that I did. I guess I thought they issued them sort of like an army uniform."

When they sat down to dinner, Fr. Tim brought out a plate with a couple of items that resembled hockey pucks on buns, and a bounty of fries which although previously frozen faired better than their meat counterparts.

"I hope you like Italian dressing, since that's all we have left. However, splurge because I think we have another couple gallons of the stuff."

"Let me guess, leftovers from the Italian festival?" Kelly ventured.

"Again your deductive powers are demonstrated and shown to be far above the average man."

"Yes, but are they far above the average woman?" Kelly continued the repartee.

"That is a question I am going to leave alone."

"I'm a little disappointed in you Fr. Tim; I didn't think you would lack an opinion in that area."

"I know better than to venture into discussions of a lady's ability in any arena."

"So you're a diplomat as well, it's a good thing since you aren't much of a cook,"

Kelly said teasing as she tried the hockey puck burger.

"I suppose you could do better?"

"Give me a try with breakfast tomorrow that is assuming there is some other food besides burgers, hot dogs, tripe and frozen pizzas."

"I think you will find the pantry stocked well enough to prepare a hearty breakfast."

"Then I will be happy to get that ready tomorrow. What time do you usually get up?"

"I usually sleep in on Saturdays; I get up at 6:00 a.m. Normally on Sundays which is my big work day, I have to be up about 5:30 because we have a 7:30 a.m. Mass"

"Speaking of your job, isn't someone going to miss you tonight?" Kelly inquired.

"Fr. Moran knows that I'm out here, but I was already off. Friday is my usual day off except for the first Friday of the month when I take communion to the shut ins. Then my day off is Thursday. By the way, breakfast around 9:00 tomorrow will be fine. I'll say Mass in the morning since I'm not scheduled to be the celebrant at tomorrow evening's Mass."

"You'll say Mass here?"

"Yes, priests are required to say Mass daily. Besides there is a beautiful chapel down the hall that rarely gets used. You're more than welcome to join me, I never quite feel that Mass is right when I'm the only participant. It is supposed to be a communal celebration."

"I don't suppose that it would do me any harm and it may even do me some good. This is a lovely building. Would you be willing to show me around after supper?"

"Sure but I think you're just stalling to avoid getting creamed at backgammon." He said as he got up and started to clear away the dishes.

Kelly helped him clean up and they then toured the outside of the monastery which included peach orchards and grape vines. Apparently the monks had originally come from Italy and fancied a bit a wine. However, they didn't realize that Texas was not the best area for growing grapes and so only a few scattered vines remained. He pointed out the bell tower and explained that the bell was currently being repaired. When they returned inside, he showed her the first floor which had been turned into mostly offices except for the common room, dining room, kitchen and chapel. The chapel was the last place that the visited. It was a short room in length but had a high ceiling which extended into the second and third floors of the building. There were numerous statues and a large rose window above the altar. The second level featured a choir loft with hand carved wooden angels and a large pipe organ. There were marble and gold accents throughout and the pews were carved from the same dark wood as the choir loft.

"This is stunning." Kelly said as she marveled at the beauty of the chapel.

"The monks had pretty good taste, I must agree." Fr. Tim replied.

They continued chatting quietly as Fr. Tim pointed out of few of the artistic flourishes that the monks had wanted.

"Have you made a wish?" He said as they were about to leave the chapel.

"No, why would I?" Kelly asked curiously.

"Whenever you visit a new church, you're supposed to make a wish. I'm surprised you didn't know that since it was my aunt who taught it to me."

"I must have missed that in my upbringing," Kelly acknowledged. "I could use a wish tonight."

"I guess it's a good thing that I reminded you of it." He smiled warmly as they went into the next room."

"Would you like some coffee?" He asked as they returned to the common room.

"Sure Father that sounds good, I'm still pretty tired so I don't think the caffeine will have any affect on my sleep. Then again with everything on my mind might."

"Kelly, would you mind calling me Tim. Even though I've been a priest for a couple of years now, I don't always feel comfortable with the Father thing."

"Sure Tim, so is St. Agnes your first assignment."

"Yes, I've been at other parishes while I was finishing up my courses, but as an ordained priest this was my first assignment. I was surprised because they usually try to put you in a new environment, but St. Agnes was my parish growing up and of course you know my aunt is in charge of the orphanage. When I was ordained, the previous priest who was here had been very sick the last few years and Fr. Moran had been the assistant. When Fr. Becker died, they appointed Fr. Moran as the pastor and I was given the associate's job. I actually think they put me here because it was near the high school where I was coaching football and I don't think they could con anyone else into taking that job so they wanted to make it easy for me to continue to coach."

"So if the team is bad because of your coaching, why would they want you to stay on?" Kelly asked confused.

"I may have put to much blame on myself regarding my coaching. The team was actually worse before I came aboard. They hadn't won a game in ten years. Most of the games were either forfeited for lack of a full team or they would get into a melee that would rival soccer fans in Europe. At least we haven't had to forfeit a game and last season we only lost one game because of fighting. Many of the kids come from the orphanage. Since you left they decided to take in boys as well as girls. "

"I see how it is; you can change the rules at the orphanage so that they can take boys, but still no women at the retreat house." Kelly teased.

"I had nothing to do with either decision. As you can see, we do make exceptions; you're here are you not?"

"Not officially."

"True enough, well Kelly I've told you about me, but what I know of you still mostly comes from what my aunt told me."

"Tim, there isn't really that much to tell. You know I lived at the orphanage as a child, I'm a detective, and now I'm here because I have no other choice."

"There are always choices, I'm glad you felt that you could come back here. My aunt speaks of you frequently although I think you're a bad influence on her."

"Why is that?" Kelly asked not following his line of thought.

"When she heard that you had been shot last year she couldn't find out any details. Another sister had been visiting California and remembered your name. She told my aunt that you had been seriously hurt. Now normally she would wait for the library to get the Los Angeles papers when she wanted to follow your exploits, however this time she was so worried she didn't want to take the chance of not knowing how you were doing. She had tried calling your work office, but your colleagues must have been with you so they never called back. As a last resort she discovered that the adult bookstore downtown got out of town papers daily and that they carried the Los Angeles Times. She managed to convince me to go down there with her, but I refused to get out of the car. If any of the parishioners had seen me at the adult bookstore I think I would have lost my collar. Anyway, she only went as far as the front door and managed to get someone's attention from inside. Obviously, they were a little surprised to see a nun standing at their door. She told the employee what she wanted and asked if she could pay for it from outside the door. The guy agreed, got her the paper and I believe was rather relieved to see the nun leaving. Thus because of you my aunt went to an adult bookstore." He said chuckling.

Kelly was now laughing as well, picturing the sight of Sr. Anne standing in the doorway of an adult bookstore.

"I never realized that she paid that close of attention to what was happening with me."

"You were always special to her, she said. She even remarked that she knew she shouldn't single out one child over another but she couldn't help it with you. I think she had you on every convent's prayer list following the shooting."

"Thanks for telling me this Tim, it means a lot."

They continued to talk over their coffee for another hour and Tim even managed to get in a game of backgammon which he won, before they retired for the night.

In the morning, Tim awoke to the smell of bacon and coffee and was surprised when he noted the 7:00 a.m. time. He had slept later than he planned, and Kelly really had chosen to make breakfast. He debated whether to shower and dress first, or to head down in his pajamas and robe. His decision came more easily as Kelly knocked at his door.

"Tim, I was just wondering if you wanted to come down for breakfast. Everything is almost ready, but I was just wondering how you wanted your eggs." She called from behind the door.

Tim hopped to his feet and grabbed his robe, hurrying to open the door.

"Good morning," he said as he opened the door.

He was surprised that Kelly was ready for the day. She looked radiant and alert, while he still felt groggy and unsure of himself.

"Good morning," Kelly replied. "I thought you were an early riser," she said as a sly smile crept across her face.

"Normally I am. I see you are well on your way to greeting the day."

"My days may be numbered, I can't really afford to waste time. I was just checking to see how you wanted your eggs."

"Scrambled will be fine, I really didn't mean for you to make breakfast."

"It's only fair, you did dinner last night, besides I wasn't sure I was up to your cooking so early in the day." She teased.

"I guess I will have to see just how much better a cook you are. Can I help with anything?" He asked as they made their way downstairs.

"No not really unless you want to get yourself some coffee."

"I'll do that." He said heading into the kitchen. "I have to admit that everything smells terrific."

He poured the coffee and added cream then went and sat down at the table. He made the sign of the cross, said a silent prayer and took a drink of the coffee.

"Can I hire you to be my secretary?" He asked jokingly. "Mine can only make this thick, sludge like substance that mimics coffee, this is the same brand of coffee that we have at the rectory and you've actually made it drinkable."

"My typing skills aren't much and I don't take shorthand, but I'm currently between jobs so you might be in luck." Kelly replied as she cracked eggs into the frying pan.

In a couple of minutes, she appeared with two plates featuring hearty portions of crispy bacon, wheat toast and fluffy eggs. Kelly placed one plate in front of Tim and set the other down on the placemat next to his. Tim immediately popped up and headed off into the kitchen.

"What did I forget?" She asked.

"You didn't really forget it, but I like hot sauce on my eggs, so if I'm lucky no one has discovered my stash." He said pulling out the bottle of reddish, orange liquid that was tucked into the very back on the top shelf of the far kitchen cabinet.

Returning to the dining area he inquired as to whether Kelly wanted to try the hot sauce but she politely declined.

"Suit yourself, but you don't know what you're missing." He commented.

"I guess I'll just have to live with the mystery of never having eaten eggs with hot sauce."

After covering the eggs in the sauce, Tim tried them and found them to be quite to his liking, the bacon was also perfect and he had to give Kelly praise for her culinary skills.

"I'm not sure how you could know whether they were good or not since they are drenched in sauce." Kelly replied to him.

"The sauce just enhances the flavor that is already there, but I have to concede that you are the better cook. I guess that means you get to make all the rest of our meals from now on." He grinned as he took another bite. "You know I could really get used to this."

Kelly's demeanor changed almost instantly and tears welled up in her eyes.

"Would you excuse me, Tim?" She said as she got up from the table and hurried upstairs.

Tim sat at the table unable to react. One minute everything was light and fun, the next Kelly was near tears. He got up and headed up the stairs, only to find the door to Kelly's room closed. He could hear light sobs coming from the other side of the door.

"Kelly, it's Tim," he said as he knocked lightly on the door. "If there's something you'd like to talk about, I'm a good listener. After all, it's a pretty important part of my job. If it's something I said or did, I'm sorry."

The door opened slowly and Kelly was in the process of trying to compose herself, her cheeks still streaked with tears.

"Tim, it wasn't anything that you did. It's just the last day that Jim and I were together, I made breakfast for us and I remembered thinking that I could get used to being with him every morning, so your comment brought that all back to me. I'm sorry, I just haven't had a lot of time to deal with losing Jim."

Tim came over and put his arm around her

"You know I can tell that you are an incredibly strong person, but you need to grieve. You went from being tremendously happy to almost unbearable sorrow in the span of a day. Most people will never know a sorrow like that. You're up against tough odds, but you're not going to have to go through it alone. I'm here if you need anything, Sr. Anne is in your corner, and I'd be willing to bet that God led you here for a reason. Kelly most people try to bury their sorrow, but it eventually has to be expressed."

She turned in closer to him and buried her head in his shoulder, crying softly. She felt safe and comforted in his arms. He held her until her tears stopped and then offered her his handkerchief.

"Thanks," she said in a hushed tone.

"You're welcome, but you don't need to thank me. Would you like to go downstairs to the chapel? I could offer the Mass for Jim."

"I'd like that." She said as they headed downstairs.

Although not a regular church goer, Kelly felt comforted by the ritualistic liturgy. With no music or sermon the service did not last long, but it was enough time for Kelly to compose herself and clear her mind.

As they made their way back into the main room, the phone rang in one of the offices and Tim went to answer it. Kelly proceeded back into the dining room and began to clear the dishes.

Shortly after Tim came into the room. "Kelly, I've got to leave for a couple of hours. Something's come up."

"Sure, I see how it is, leave just as soon as it's time to do the dishes." She teased.

"You've got me pegged." He smiled grabbing his keys from the table. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

Kelly was actually grateful to have the dishes to wash and she busied herself putting them away. She wondered if Sr. Anne had contacted anyone. She wondered what emergency called Tim away. Most of all she wondered what she was going to do next. She couldn't stay at the retreat house forever and sooner or later, Novotny would check out the orphanage. It was afternoon when Kelly saw a black Mazda appear outside the door. She decided to head upstairs and see who was inside from the window that overlooked the front of the building. By the time she had reached the top of the stairs and looked out the occupants had already exited the car. Then she heard Tim's friendly voice downstairs.

"Kelly, it's Tim. I've got someone here who'd like to see you."

Kelly came down the stairs wondering who Tim had managed to bring back with him.

"Bri," she exclaimed in surprise as she saw Sabrina by the door.

"You sure got yourself into a mess this time, Kel?" Sabrina said as she gave her a hug.

"You don't know the half of it, Bri."

"Unfortunately Kel, I think you're the one who has been out of the loop for awhile.

"What are you talking about?"

"Julie is missing, and Kris has been arrested."

"What?" Kelly asked in surprise.

"Agent Novotny had Kris arrested for harboring a fugitive and helping her escape from the law. No one has seen Julie since early Thursday." Sabrina relayed the bleak news.

"That bastard," Kelly spat out the words. "I haven't even talked to Kris since this happened and what did he do to Julie? Bri, I've got to stop him. I shouldn't have run, I should have found a way to confront him."

"Wait a minute, I think you're about to do exactly what he wants you to do. Kelly calm down. Charlie has already sent the lawyer down to make bail for Kris so she should be out soon. As for Julie, my guess is that he is trying to flush you out by using her as bait."

"How did you get here and how do you know what Charlie has been up to?"

"Luckily I was on vacation with Bill and Tina when this happened. Charlie found out through one of Bill's friend where we were and called me to tell me about the kind of trouble that you were in, he also was worried that the rest of us might become involved. He asked me if I wouldn't mind trying to find you. He also arranged for Bill and Tina to extend their vacation, but he had them moved to another location. Sr. Anne tried to contact me at home; she left a message on the machine. She was, however, discreet in that she didn't leave any information about you or her number. I guess she figured that I would know who she was. As it turned out, I remembered you speaking of her and I called her from a pay phone. She told me that you were indeed here, and I flew out in the wee hours of the morning. Fr. Tim here picked me up at the airport and here I am."

"So this was your emergency?" Kelly said looking back over her shoulder at Tim who was now trying to become inconspicuous.

"I thought we should keep up the cloak and dagger stuff." He stated timidly.

Kelly just shook her head and turned her attentions back to Sabrina. "Bri, I've got to do something, I can't stay here forever. Tim can't be babysitting me, and if Julie's in trouble I've got to try and help."

"And what do you propose to do, call Novotny out into the middle of town for a duel? As soon as he locates you, the place will be crawling with agents and you know that they are going to be encouraged to remove you permanently from the planet. After all, as far as most of them are concerned, you killed one of their own. Besides Novotny there may be other agents who are working with him. You did the right thing in getting out of there; you'd be dead if you hadn't. Let Charlie and I check things out before you go and do anything rash."

Tim who had been listening to the conversation was becoming more concerned. Although he knew that Kelly was in danger, Sabrina's points were good ones and now realized more completely just how difficult a situation Kelly was in.

"Maybe it would have been better if things had worked out Novotny's way. Kris wouldn't be in jail, Julie would be safe, you'd be vacationing, the nuns wouldn't be in any danger and Fr. Tim wouldn't be driving 25 miles everyday to keep tabs on a detective that can't even prove that she didn't kill her fiancé." Kelly said berating herself.

"Kelly, I'm sorry about Jim. Charlie told me that he had proposed, but don't beat yourself up over it. I do have some good news. Novotny didn't cover himself completely with the shooting. The story he relayed was that he walked in and saw you and Jim arguing, then you shot Jim, he dropped to the ground and you took off running when you saw Novotny coming for you. He said he pursued you and fired two shots at you, but then he lost you. The problem with the story is that the shots he fired at you came from your gun. If you had shot Jim, why would you have dropped your gun? Charlie talked to Abe Lawrence his friend with the bureau. Abe relayed to him that there were 7 slugs recovered, 4 of them from your gun. Two were from Jim's, and another was from Agent Davidson's. One of the slugs from your gun had a trace of blood on it. It matched your type. Were you hit?"

"Yes, Bri but it just barely grazed my arm."

"It may be what helps to prove your innocence because once Novotny realized his mistake; he tried to claim that you had fired at him before you escaped thus putting the gun back in your hand. Unfortunately for him, what he wasn't counting on was that fact that he drew blood when he fired. It would be impossible for you to shoot yourself and have those slugs end up where they did. The only problem is that the only prints that they could lift from the gun were yours."

"I don't recall Larry wearing gloves, but then everything that night happened so fast. Bri what if I just turned myself in? I mean if I do it to the local police, then that should keep Larry at bay"

"I thought of that, but do you really think you'll be safe. Novotny's never going to let you testify to anyone. As much as I hate to say this, I don't think there is a way that your safety could be guaranteed. I honestly think you have a better chance out here. I have the feeling that Novotny is already hot on your trail, I'm actually surprised he hasn't arrived at the orphanage yet. By the way how did you manage to get here?"

"I hopped a train which I ended up riding all the way to Roswell, New Mexico. Then I met a guy in a bar who let me spend the night at his house."

"I bet he did." Sabrina interrupted.

"No, it wasn't like that, he was actually a sweet guy. I stayed with his parents and little sister."

"I wonder if they knew they had public enemy number 1 in their spare bedroom?" Sabrina chuckled.

"Can I finish?" Kelly replied annoyed.

"Sorry, please continue."

"I pawned my engagement ring with the guy's uncle and got a beater car and some cash. Drove the car to the orphanage and was escorted here on a school bus."

"A school bus, well you do get points for creativity."

"I'm at a loss as to what to do. Running or waiting just will prolong things and probably make them worse. Do you have any ideas?"

"Actually, I do. Novotny might have the edge right now, but you are a definite thorn in his side and he isn't going to stop pursuing you. He will eventually check out the orphanage. Maybe when he does, we let him know that you are out here. At least that way, the orphanage isn't the scene of any mayhem. If we could set up some sort of recording system and if he says something that gives him away then you might have a chance."

"There seems to be a lot of 'ifs' in that explanation." Kelly replied unconvinced.

"The unfortunate thing is that you don't have a whole lot of options. It's kind of like _I fought the Law._"

"Great, in that song, the law wins."

"Anyway when Fr. Tim goes back this afternoon, I'm going to go with him to the convent, Sr. Anne said I could spend the night there. If Novotny shows, I can contact you. Meanwhile Tim said that this place has a P.A. system that he can switch to record sound, not just project it. When Novotny arrives, I'll contact you, and we'll arrange to let it slip to Novotny that the priest knows where you are. He'll follow Tim out here, you'll have the P.A. ready to go and with any luck, you'll charm him into making a full confession, all the while avoiding being killed."

"Do we have a plan B?"

"We always have a plan B, I'll be following Novotny so I should be close by. At least, I know the way. Fr. Tim took me a different way so that I can get here at the same time as Novotny without him realizing that anyone is nearby."

"I don't want Tim to be involved in this, I just don't like it."

"Kelly, I knew you were going to say that, but it makes sense and he is fine with it." Sabrina reassured.

"I won't get in the way, I'll just be in the car that he follows that should be safe enough." Tim added as he once again joined the conversation.

"So what do we do until then?" Kelly asked not completely satisfied with the idea.

"Well, we should see how this P.A. thing works, and then I wouldn't mind some lunch."

"Let me show you where the controls are." Tim jingled his keys as they walked towards the chapel. He opened the door and headed up behind the altar, to a little room where the P.A. controls were located.

"So how does this work?" Kelly said as she looked at the array of dials and switches.

"Actually it is fairly simple, flip all of these switches on, this will give you access to all of the rooms with a P.A. The only rooms that are not equipped with a P.A. are the bed and bathrooms. Flip this switch on and you can hear the rooms. It works the same way a school's system does. Remember when the principal would call into your classroom and the teacher could respond? Exactly the same thing, the only difference in this case is you're going to also hit the play and record buttons on the tape deck. This will record anything that is heard over the speaker."

"Sounds easy enough, but maybe we should test it out. I wouldn't want him to spill everything and miss the whole thing. Tim why don't you go to another room and start talking then we can test everything out."

"Good idea, I'll head over to the kitchen."

"Great maybe you can start on lunch while you're in there." Sabrina joked.

"Bri, you don't know what you're getting yourself into." Kelly commented.

"Gee, you hide somebody in your retreat house and they're so ungrateful." Tim said shaking his head as he left the room.

The P.A. was tested and it worked just as Tim had said it would. Then Kelly and Sabrina headed over to the kitchen, but Kelly dismissed the both of them, having experienced both of their culinary skills. Lunch turned out to be a pleasant considering the circumstances and it was already mid-afternoon.

"I suppose that I will see you soon," Kelly said to Sabrina as it came time for her to leave.

"Kelly try not to worry, things will work out. From what I hear Novotny's got a bit of an ego, hopefully that will be his downfall."

"Thanks for coming, you're a good friend, Bri."

"You'd do the same. Take care of yourself and try to stay out of trouble."

"A little late for that, but I'll do my best." Kelly said as she gave Sabrina a hug.

Tim came downstairs and he and Sabrina set out in the Mazda.

Kelly had this nervous energy. This was the kind of stuff she hated about her job. She didn't mind the jobs when she was actively doing something, she hated the stakeouts where she had to just sit and wait. This was even worse because she was basically waiting for someone to come and kill her. At least with Bri around she should have a little advanced warning. Evening came and the house seemed to grow even quieter. She could hear the clocks ticking from various rooms; she wished that Tim would get back. It was with great relief that she heard the car pull into the drive. She peaked out the window and saw that it was Tim. What she didn't see was that just out of her view a gray Buick had followed Fr. Tim and the person driving the car was no friend.

Tim was quieter that night, his never ending stream of jokes weren't there and Kelly actually missed them.

"How do you live like this?" He finally asked after a light dinner and everything was cleaned up.

"I don't usually live like this." Kelly replied quickly. "Most days are just as dull as everyone else's."

"Surely though, there have been other times when you've been in danger like this?"

"Yeah I have had a few close calls. Most of the time, I've had other people to help me."

"You have that here as well."

"I do and you've been terrific. I shouldn't have come here though. I put too many people's lives at risk, but now that I am here, I've got to see it through. Tim, I really do want to thank you and Sr. Anne for giving me a refuge."

"We would be rather phony if we didn't."

"There are plenty of people out there who are phony, I've been lucky here. Let's not talk about this. I want a diversion from it all, are you ready to lose at backgammon," she challenged.

"You're on."

They played three games before heading off to bed, Kelly winning two and Fr. Tim winning the other to leave the match tied at 2 a piece. Tim sat by the window, watching the street outside. All was quiet, but he wasn't sleepy. He prayed for Kelly and he prayed for himself, not quite sure what he should ask for. Kelly lay in her bed across the hall; sleep was also not coming easily for her. She felt lifeless and her head ached, tension was all around her, but her mind seemed clouded. Eventually, she too fell asleep, but it was a restless, uneven sleep. Meanwhile the gray Buick had left, its occupant had thought about a late night visit, but he determined that the fewer the witnesses the better.

Morning came and Tim left early grabbing a cup of coffee to go and heading out the door. He planned on giving the congregation a break with a short homily before stopping by the orphanage to check on Sabrina. He wasn't sure what to expect when he arrived at the orphanage that day. No one had tried to call so he reasoned that at least up to this morning; no one had come to visit. After the service, he a couple of blocks over to the orphanage and he could tell by the large number of men in suits that something was definitely happening. He tried to enter into the parking lot, but was stopped by a couple of men. One was hesitant to turn away a priest, the other had no such qualms. He knew that he was supposed to lead the agents to Kelly but that didn't really seem to be a good plan any longer. He had no way of contacting Sabrina, but he knew that he had to tell Kelly what was taking place.

While Tim was debating his options at the orphanage, Larry Novotny got out of the silver Buick and walked towards the door of the monastery. Kelly had been upstairs when she heard the faintest noise that she thought may have been a door closing. She looked out the window and saw Novotny. Kelly rushed down the stairs towards the chapel, she heard Novotny try the front door, then nothing. She frantically flipped the switches and spun the dial to its highest setting before running to the common room; there she heard the crash of glass and the click of the lock being opened. She headed back into the chapel and went over to the confessional. At least she would be out of site. She assumed that Tim must be nearby and that Sabrina was on her way, if she could just buy herself some time. She heard Novotny's footsteps crunch over the broken glass, then she heard him heading upstairs, she debated trying to make a run for it outside but if she didn't make it before he came back down, she would have to confront him and the odds were currently in his favor. She could him his mumbled comments over the speaker, but had no idea which room they were coming from. Then she heard the door of the chapel open and she heard him enter. Then she heard the bolt on the door slide shut.

"Garret, I'll find you this time, you might as well give up. You've got to be in here because I've got others checking the rest of the place and they've turned up nothing." He bluffed. I could hear my own voice echoing from down here, so I know that you are listening. You know it wasn't the plan for me to dispose of you. I thought del Toro would be able to take you out, but you proved more resourceful than I thought. Actually it was Fischer's job, but he went and fell for you. He told me that night that he wanted out, but he was already too far in. Does it surprise you that lover boy was helping to cover up the dope peddling? No, I think you could believe that and maybe even forgive him for it, but I know something you couldn't forgive and that would be murder. You know who offed your nosy minister friend; it was your beloved Jim." He continued to yell, hoping to draw Kelly out.

She sat low crouched into the corner of the confessional. His words burned into her and she felt a tear run down her cheek when she thought of Bosman. Her mind wanted to believe that what he was saying was lies, but she recalled the look on Jim's face right before Novotny had shot him, and she knew that he was telling the truth.

In the meantime, Tim headed back to the retreat house. He had an uneasy feeling and he sped towards his destination with little resistance as traffic was very light. Still as he pulled up in front something didn't seem right. He noticed a gray sedan sitting back to the side. He fished out his keys from his pocket and bounded up the stairs. He entered the building and saw the busted window. He ran towards it, but then heard a voice coming from the chapel. It was a man's voice.

Kelly could hear Novotny's voice getting closer and finally saw his shadow on the frosted window of the confessional door. She got up on her feet and as he opened the door, Kelly rushed him. She knocked him to the floor and managed to knock the gun out of his hand as he fired a shot wildly in the air. Fr. Tim heard the shot and raced down the hall. When he tried the door, it was bolted. The heavy wood and iron slide lock would not be budged. He heard glass shatter and decided that his best bet was to head to the second floor and enter through the choir loft. He dashed up the stairs two at a time, hoping to figure out a way to help. Kelly continued to fight, but Novotny was clearly gaining and edge and soon he had her pinned to the floor, his hand on her throat.

"This is better than shooting you," He said relishing his victory as he applied more pressure to Kelly's neck.

Tim entered the loft and looked out over the room and saw Kelly with Novotny. She already looked as though she were unconscious and he knew he didn't have much time He hiked himself over the railing of the loft and jumped hoping to use Novotny to break his fall. His jump was accurate and he pulled Novotny off of Kelly as the momentum from his jump carried him forward. The two men wrestled with each other until Tim got to his feet, Novotny dove for the gun, but Tim saw him and kicked the gun away. Novotny got to his feet and threw a punch that he did not land. Tim lowered his shoulder and drove Novotny into the wall like a linebacker with a blocking sled. He landed two punches to Novotny's abdomen, but Novotny continued to battle. Tim let down his guard for a moment and Novotny hammered his jaw with a right hook. Tim fell to the floor dazed from the blow. Kelly had begun to awake and saw Tim take the hit. She scrambled to her feet and made her way for the gun and got it in her possession when Novotny grabbed her from behind. She fought him wildly trying to free her arm from his grasp. She freed it for a moment and yelled to Tim as she tossed it in his direction. Tim caught the gun and held it on Novotny who stood behind Kelly with his arm around her neck.

"Tim, if you have to shoot me to get him, do it." Kelly yelled.

"Yes Father, why don't you kill the both of us in the house of God and then for sure someone who is innocent will have died. She's a killer, she killed an F.B.I. agent and you are only making things worse for yourself by helping her now." Novotny pointed out.

"You're the one whose defiled the house of God, let her go." Tim said with an intensity that Kelly couldn't imagine him possessing.

"Realizing that Tim was not believing his story, Novotny tried another tact. Father, you've got a choice to make, you see there is a bomb planted in the basement of the St. Agnes orphanage. You can either spend your time here with this stand off or you can go to the phone and at least save the children if not Miss Rogers. You see, no one knows that she is down there with the bomb." Novotny said as a smirk came across his face. "Considering today is Sunday, most of the children should be there." Novotny replied giving up the ruse of his innocence.

"How do I know you're not bluffing?" Tim asked his gaze intent on Novotny.

"You don't, but just to reassure you, I left it behind when I had my men sweep the orphanage this morning in my search for Miss Garrett. A couple of my fellow agents assisted me in leaving Miss Rogers behind. I knew that should I find any difficulties here, that Garrett wouldn't have the stomach to let all those kiddies and her friend be blown to pieces. I guess you could say it was my back up plan. The best part of it is that I will put the blame for it on her."

"Tim, do what he says. Get to the phone and get the orphanage cleared out." Kelly commanded.

"Kelly, I can't leave you here with him." Tim answered his eyes never moving from Novotny.

"Aw, isn't that sweet, I'll say this for you Garrett, you really have a way of wrapping men around your finger. It even seems you've gotten to the good priest."

"Tim, this is an issue of the greater good, you've got to do what he says. It isn't over yet."

Tim reluctantly backed towards the door, keeping the gun trained on Novotny. Kelly struggled against his grip which he continued to tighten. She let go of his arm and felt the pressure on her trachea. It wouldn't be long before she would run out of air. She elbowed him and nailed his foot with hers in the same motion. This caused him to let up momentarily. Distracted he had looked away from Tim, who took a deep breath and fired a single shot, blood splattered against the pew and Novotny crashed to the floor. The inertia toppled Kelly as well and she fell backwards on top of him. Momentarily stunned, she got up slowly, and looked at Novotny's unmoving body as a river of blood began to run along the marble floor. Kelly leaned over the body and felt for a pulse, it was faint but it was there.

"Is he dead?" Tim asked unsure of what he wanted Kelly's response to be.

"He's still alive, but he won't be for long unless he gets some medical attention. We don't have time to worry about him; we've got to warn Sabrina and the nuns to get the kids out of the orphanage. I've got to get there and find Julie."

"I agree that's our first priority, but I have to at least call an ambulance for him." Tim added.

"Can I have the gun?" Kelly said noticing that Tim was staring at it like he had just picked up a poisonous snake.

"Yeah here you go." He responded distantly.

"Tim, what you did wasn't wrong, you saved my life, and I know it's a terrible thing to have to do, but I need you to help me now more than ever." Kelly said trying to reach him in his state of shock.

They left the chapel and headed into the common room.

"Where is the phone?" Kelly asked.

"I'm sorry Kelly, all the phones are in the offices, let me open the door." He said as he rummaged for his keys in his pocket.

He opened the door, and dialed the number of Sr. Anne's office, then handed the phone to Kelly.

"Hello," Sr. Anne's voice came on the phone sounding frail and uneasy.

"Sr. Anne, this is Kelly I need you to listen to me very carefully. Get all the children and sisters out of the orphanage, there is a bomb planted somewhere in the building. Get as far away as you can. Do you understand?" Kelly spoke frantically.

"The F.B.I. is here, I'm not sure they will let us leave."

"Sister, tell them that Agent Novotny needs some assistance and tell them where I'm at. I also need to speak with Sabrina; do you know where she is?"

"Yes, she's right here." The nun replied as she handed the phone to Sabrina.

"Yeah, what's going on?" Sabrina asked as she got the phone.

"Bri, you've got to get that place cleared out, there's a bomb probably in one of the lower levels. Julie is there as well, she's been left with the bomb. I will try to get there as soon as I can, but I don't know how much time we have. Just get out of there."

"Kelly, I'll look for Julie and we'll get the orphanage cleared out."

"Bri, I want you out of there too, you've got a little one at home, and Julie wouldn't want you to take that chance."

"I can't just sit back and do nothing. I'll take one look around, if I don't uncover anything. I'll get out as quickly as I can, but we're wasting time now. I'll see you when you get here."

"Yeah Bri, I'll be there soon." Kelly said her voice sounding braver than the fear she was feeling inside.

"Let's go," Tim said as Kelly came out of the office.

"I thought you wanted to call an ambulance?" Kelly asked as they made their way to the door.

"I already did, each office has its own line."

"Good thinking Tim."

They headed out the door and hopped into Tim's black Mazda which would facilitate their trip back to the orphanage.

As Tim and Kelly were speeding their way back, Sr. Anne had decided that it was time for an emergency day of school. They were going to have safety training and all the students and sisters were required to head over to the school immediately. After making the announcement, two F.B.I. agents came in and wanted to know what was going on. She then told them that she had received a call from Agent Novotny and that he could use their assistance at the old Dominican monastery. She wrote down the address and they bolted from the room.

Sabrina had set off on her own journey, deciding to begin at the bottom and work her way up. Sr. Anne had provided her with a set of master keys and as she reached the basement, she realized that with so many doors her task was going to be quite daunting. She felt uneasy and could only think of Bill and Tina. She opened a few doors and found mostly old school furniture. Nothing seemed amiss. She walked down the hallway and noticed a drinking fountain; she stopped to take a drink. This may have been the best decision of Sabrina's life. When she felt for the hand, she felt a wire. Bending down, she felt a box, and saw that the wire led under a door. She headed over to the door, and unlocked it. At first, she didn't see anything but she heard some noise coming from the back of the room and she followed the wire there as well. She found Julie tied and gagged in the corner. She pulled off the gag, and began to untie her hands.

"I am glad to see you." Julie said as she got to her feet.

"We need to get out of here fast." Sabrina said running for the door.

"No wait, we can prevent the thing from going off. It will take the both of us, but I know that we can disarm it. There is about fifteen minutes left on the timer."

"Sorry, but there is no point in doing that, everyone has been evacuated, let's leave it to the bomb squad."

"I suppose you're right." Julie said as the both headed upstairs.

They arrived outside in time to see Sr. Anne hurriedly running towards them.

"One of the children is missing, her name is Antonia, we call her Toni, but she must not have realized everyone had left. She is deaf, and unless one of the other girls was with her, she wouldn't know to leave. Her room is on the other side of the building. I'll be right back, I have to go in and get her."

"No Sister, Julie and I will take care of it. I suppose two wire cutters would be a bit much to ask right now, but how about a couple of sharp knives."

"I can get those for you from my desk." Sr. Anne ran towards the building as Sabrina and Julie jogged behind.

She pulled out two razor sharp switch blades, and handed them to Julie and Sabrina. "Contraband that we've taken from students." Sister explained.

Julie and Sabrina headed down to the basement.

"Are you sure that you know what you're doing?" Sabrina asked unconvinced.

"Yes, for two reasons, first I watched him install the bomb; second while Kelly has been on leave, Charlie has decided to take fewer cases. So to keep us fresh, he had Kris and I take some classes to beef up our skills. Kris is studying some interrogation techniques, and I went to explosives training. With this set up there are actually two bombs, each completes a circuit. If one side is cut it sends a message to the second to detonate, thus the bomb cannot be dismantled with just one person. However, if both sides are cut, the circuit is completely destroyed and neither bomb goes off."

"I have to admit you sound convincing."

"Trust me, I don't have a death wish, if I didn't think we could do it, then I wouldn't be down here."

They reached the bomb, Julie pointed to the point in the wire that Sabrina should sever, then she went into the room and found the second circuit.

"All right, on the count of three, One, two, three" Julie counted as she and Sabrina cut the wires at three.

Sabrina felt a wave of relief as she realized the bomb had not detonated. Julie smiled broadly and was grateful that she had been correct. They walked out onto the courtyard where Sr. Anne was once more waiting for them.

"How did it go?" She asked a little hesitantly.

"The bomb is diffused if you want to send someone in to look for Toni, you can." Sabrina replied.

"Well, that won't be necessary, it seems someone had overlooked her, she was at the school the entire time." Sr. Anne explained sheepishly.

Sabrina looked at Julie and just shook her head. Julie just laughed and said, "I guess we were meant to diffuse that bomb."

Fr. Tim and Kelly continued to make their way along the largely unused road, but he wasn't talking much. Kelly could tell that the shooting had really shaken him up.

"I'm sorry that you had to be involved in that, but I'm grateful to you. That was an amazing shot." She said admiringly.

"My dad was a police officer, so he wanted me to know how to use a gun. I went to the range with him when I was in my early teens, then I refused to go. I told him that handguns weren't meant for anything but killing other people, and I could never do that. He said that knowing how to do something didn't mean that you had to do it. "

"Your dad was right,"

"But so was I, I just used a gun to take a life."

"You don't know that for sure, he might pull through. You see Tim, the difference between he and you is that if he had shot you, there would be absolutely no remorse. You've got every right to feel uncomfortable with what happened. You're a good man, and that's why it is bothering you. But if you need any reassurance from me about what you did, I am eternally thankful to you for having the courage to fire that gun even if everything didn't feel right to you."

"Have you ever had to shoot someone?"

"Yes, and every single one stays with me, no matter what the crimes were that they committed. It is a burden, but it is part of the life I've chosen to live. I've honestly can say that I've never used force purely out of anger, only if I needed to prevent further harm."

"Maybe that's part of the problem. I did feel anger and hatred and fear. I've actually become fond of you and I couldn't stand by and watch him hurt you."

"Even the church has conditions for justifiable killings and self defense is one of them. Not only did you defend me, you probably saved your own life, and the lives of all those other people at the orphanage. A greater good came out of what you did."

"I know that in my head, but I didn't become a priest to harm others. It was contrary to everything I believe in. I was so scared when I pulled the trigger, I kept thinking what would I do if I missed or worse if I hit you by mistake."

"But you didn't miss and maybe someone else had a plan for you to be in that room. If your dad hadn't trained you to fire a weapon, you wouldn't have made that shot, and all this would be a lot worse right now. I think we call what happened today, providence."

Continuing down the road, Kelly saw a black sedan heading in the opposite direction. She could see through the tinted window a man who looked like Agent Davidson. She figured that it must be Agents Davidson and Spillane. They were probably going to check on Novotny. They passed without incident and Kelly and Tim continued on their way. A few minutes later, Kelly noticed the car in her mirror.

"Tim, we've got company."

"What?" He questioned before checking the mirror himself to see the car gaining ground on them.

"Floor it, when you get up to that forested area that we passed on the way up, pull over, get out of the car and head for the woods. They'll follow me in the car. With any luck you'll be able to flag someone down soon after. That collar of yours should help you with that."

"Why am I leaving the car?" He asked not following her.

"Because I've already done enough to you. I don't want you to be put into another position like the one back at the chapel."

"I don't think we are going to have that option even going as fast as we are, they are still catching up. There isn't going to be time to drop me off. Beside I think you can use me."

"Is that right?" Kelly responded surprised that he was willing to continue. "I really can't argue with you. I can use all the help I can get. When you reach the turn in the bend, spin the car in their direction, try to get my side of the car facing them, I will try to shoot out the tires.

Tim did as Kelly asked but the agents were ready with guns drawn the fired at Tim's car. One bullet pierced the backseat passenger door, the second hit something in the engine which caused a hissing sound to begin. Kelly had ducked down at the first barrage of bullets, but fired back hitting the agents' front tire.

"Tim, I hate to say this but they've got more fire power, and I'm not sure if your car is going to run much longer. Did you ever see Rebel without a Cause?"

"Yeah, why do you ask?"

"Because we're about to reenact a scene, head for them as fast as the car will go and at the last second jump out. With any luck we might even the odds a little. Good luck," She yelled as a second volley of shots were fire."

Tim floored the gas and headed directly at the car, he and Kelly both opened their doors as the F.B.I. agents dove for cover. Tim and Kelly jumped out landing hard on the rough pavement. The two cars collided in spectacular fashion, with a monstrous roar of clanging steel and explosive combustion. Kelly ran over to Spillane who had hit the deck and was now staring at the two cars in flames. Kelly pointed the gun to his back and took his gun from his hand, then giving it to Tim who had come over by her.

"Where's the other one?" He asked, having lost sight of Agent Davidson.

Then Kelly saw some brief movement behind the burning cars.

"Watch him," She said as she headed towards the movement. Davidson saw her and fired a quick round, but missed.

"Hold it Mike," She said training her gun on him. "You took your shot, now its time to pack it in. Novotny's dead so no one is going to save you. It isn't worth it, because you know I won't miss."

"Always sure of yourself, Kelly. That's what Jim liked about you." He said as he tossed the gun to the ground.

Considering where they were the police arrived in record time. Apparently a motorist had seen the car inferno and called the sheriff and the fire department. The fireman put out the cars, and the sheriff got the stories about Novotny and the other two, although he still took Kelly into custody as she was a fugitive. Fr. Tim had managed to convince the sheriff to get a car out to the orphanage, and to have him check on the status there. The sheriff let Tim know that the bomb had been diffused and that everyone was safe. Tim returned to the station with the sheriff and filled in what took place in the chapel. Kelly sat alone in a holding cell wondering just how things would sort themselves out. The sheriff permitted Tim in to see her for a few minutes.

"Kelly, it shouldn't be long and you'll be released." He said reassuringly.

"You have more faith in the justice system than I do." She replied a bit discouraged.

"I have faith in you. I'm sure with your friends' help and my testimony, you'll be out on the streets causing trouble again."

"Thanks for everything; you really went beyond what you had to. The only reason I'm still here is because of you."

"I'm glad that we got to meet, we'll have to finish that backgammon tournament sometime. I'll see you soon, but I've got to go and give last rites at St. Mark's hospital."

"I'll be waiting right here." Kelly said smiling as she watched him turn and walk down the hallway.

Tim entered the intensive care unit of St. Mark's, it was a place that he was familiar with. It was late, sometime after midnight, when he arrived. He stopped at the nurses' station and inquired about the patient. He walked over to a small enclosed room. A police guard stood outside, but he stepped away when the priest requested entry. Tim looked at the man, tubes protruding from nearly every part of his body. Monitors calculating his blood pressure, pulse, and temperature displayed the vitals updating almost on the minute. Tim came over and took out the small container with the blessed chrism. He went over to the bed and made the sign of the cross on Novotny's forehead. He repeated the formulaic prayers and stepped away from the bed. He left the room and glanced back through the glass. The rituals of his faith had once again restored a sense of balance in his life. Perhaps, Kelly had been right about providence being at work earlier that day; he also believed that it was providence that made him the priest on call for St. Mark's that night.

Kelly had managed to nod off in her cell, but was awoken by the entry of a guard. He unlocked the door and motioned for her to follow him. When she got through the door, she saw Sabrina, Julie and Kris waiting for her. Kris came up to her and wrapped her in an enthusiastic embrace.

"Kelly, it's so good to see you, we were all so worried." Kris spoke with sincerity.

"I can't tell you how good it is to see all of you, I hope things weren't too terrible for you." Kelly replied acknowledging that her friends had not had an easy few days.

"They were a little hairy." Julie agreed. "But we made it through."

"Kris, how did you get here so fast?" Kelly questioned as she looked at the clock and it was still the wee hours of the morning.

"Actually, Bri called me yesterday and asked me to come. I also am acting as a courier for the L.A. police department. In their investigation of Jim's death, they came across a letter that he left behind. It was left in his safety deposit box for you. It goes into detail about Novotny's set up, who was involved, and who was responsible. With the testimony from Fr. Tim, the letter and your own statements not to mention the ballistics evidence the D.A. has decided not to pursue any action against you."

"Can I see the letter?" Kelly asked cautiously.

"I thought you would want to see it so I made a copy, I passed on the notarized copy to the sheriff here." Kris said as she handed Kelly the tall, golden envelope.

Dear Kelly,

Since you are reading this letter, it means that my death has taken place. I wish that I could have told you these things like a man and not as a coward taking the easy way out. I just couldn't bear to see the hurt in your eyes. Before I continue, let me first tell you that I've never loved anyone the way that I loved you. You did more for me than I thought possible. My life had become a daily nightmare of cynical regulations, corrupt people, and dismal situations. You gave me back hope, respect, loyalty, and most of all love. Do not doubt for a minute that what I shared with you was real, genuine love.

Now for the hard part, Kelly I've got to come clean to you about the operation that we've been working on. The L.A. cops are not connected to the tip offs to the drug dealers. It wasn't the cops, but the bureau that has been helping out the dealers. I'd like to say that I just found out about this and plan on turning the guys in, but I'm one of the guys. Novotny, Spillane, Davidson, and I are all involved. If anyone else is involved, I'm not aware of it. This is Novotny's set up. I wish I could say that I had a good reason for going along with it, but my only reason was greed. At first, it didn't seem like such a big deal, then it kept snowballing, as it got bigger more people got hurt. I became so detached that nothing made me care or feel anymore. Then you came along, and you wouldn't allow yourself to be tainted by that world. You didn't give up on your ideals and you really believed that you could make a difference. I admired your loyalty and your dedication to your friends and I wanted to be a part of that. Remarkably, you let me into your life. If I could change the things I'd done in my past, I would have, but there is one thing that I'm sure you will not be able to forgive. I am the person who killed Bosman. I can never justify it and I'm not going to try, but you deserve to know why. He had figured out somehow that the L.A. cops were clean; I know he told you that he suspected them, however after he had spoken with you, he got some new information. One of our dope peddlers had a conversion of a sort and told Bosman that it was the F.B.I. and not the L.A. cops. Larry couldn't let that get out, so he wanted Bosman removed. In order to keep me in line, he asked me to kill him. Larry, Spillane, and Davidson had all done something to risk their necks and so it was my turn. I knew it wasn't right, but I steeled myself with some whiskey and I went into that church and shot him. I've never been able to forget it and when I met you and found out why you were helping us, everything just seemed more horrible. Sorry doesn't express what I feel and if I ended up paying for this with my life it is only fitting. I'm sorry that I wasn't the man you thought I was, perhaps things would have been different if I had only met you sooner. You are the heir to my estate, do whatever you wish with the money. Perhaps, you could set up a fund for Bosman's family. Kelly, again I am so sorry, but I did love you. I can't ask you to forgive me, but perhaps this letter will help you to end the corruption, killing, pain that the four of us caused.

Yours,

Jim

Kelly wiped away tears and found it hard to concentrate on the last words of the letter.

"Hey, it's o.k." Sabrina said, putting her arm around her shoulder.

"Kelly, we all liked Jim, none of us had any inkling about this." Kris said giving her a gentle pat on the back.

"Novotny told me that Jim was responsible for Bosman's death, but I didn't want to believe it. Now I can't deny it. How could I have missed this? I was with him constantly for months and I never had any clue that he was involved."

"I know it is a cliché but love is blind. At least now you know what's been going on." Julie offered.

"What would have happened had I married him? How could someone go into a church and shoot an unarmed man just because it was his turn to do so? I'm having a hard time taking all this in right now."

"After the 400 forms are filled out, you should be free to go. We'll get you back home, and maybe you can start to forget about all of this. Remember if there is anything you need, we'll be here." Kris spoke reassuringly.

"I know, all of you have been terrific as always. Thanks for bringing down the letter, Kris, you really didn't have to come all this way. I'm sorry for all the trouble I've caused you."

"Kelly, just stop. You had no control over any of this. We're all just glad that you're all right and this has been solved."

"I just wonder if all this is worth it."

"If it's any consolation to you, the drugs that were transferred that night in the warehouse were turned in, because with Jim's death Novotny couldn't take a chance that someone might have noticed if some of it missing." Kris informed her. "You managed to goof up his plans pretty good."

"I guess we're even because he certainly goofed up mine." Kelly replied dismally.

Charlie has arranged a suite for you at the Hilton until you're ready to go back to L.A. He's also given Julie and me a few days off. If you want to hang out with us, we've got nothing planned, but if you just want to be alone for awhile, we understand." Kris offered.

"Right now, I'm pretty tired, so I think I'll take advantage of Charlie's offer. What are you up to?" Kelly addressed Sabrina.

"Actually I'm going to be leaving this afternoon, Bill's going a little crazy with Tina. Since she's become mobile, there's never a dull moment. If you need me to stay, I can?" Sabrina explained.

"No I appreciate you coming; you should get back home to Bill and Tina. Suite sounds expansive do you want to hang out there and maybe get a little rest before your plane leaves"

"Actually I've got to get my things packed and check out of my hotel, I'll try to stop by on my way to the airport. Some peace and quiet sounds good; I've had more than my share of excitement for awhile."

"Yeah, we had a pretty close call, with the bomb in the orphanage. One of the bomb squad guys told me that we would have been blown to smithereens had the bomb been properly wired. Apparently I need to take a few more classes in my explosives course." Julie laughed uncomfortably.

"Did you really have to let me know that?" Sabrina asked as she shook her head.

"O.K. Miss Garrett, you can go," the sergeant said returning to the room a stack of papers in his hand.

"Thank you," she replied getting up from the seat and heading to the door.

"Why don't we all head to our hotels and then Julie, Kelly and I can pick you up Bri and take you to the airport. If we meet about noon, we could do lunch before you leave."

"Sounds good Kris, I'll be ready." Sabrina replied as they made there way down the sterile, fluorescent lighted hall.

The hotel was beautiful, marble and mirrored glass everywhere. One day I'm sleeping in railcar the next I'm in the most expensive hotel in Texas, Kelly thought to herself. As she approached the door, key in hand, Kris had followed closely behind while Julie had headed off to her room.

"Charlie had me pick up a few things for you including new luggage." Kris said as they entered the room.

"What a pain, I've been to all of you. I'm so sorry Kris. When I was on that train, all I kept thinking was, 'if only I could talk to Kris, or Julie or Bri, I could deal with this.' It was just the most isolated I've ever felt. I don't know what I would do without you guys." Kelly replied barely holding the tears at bay.

"Kelly, we all feel the same way. I mean look at Bri, she left her family to come and help you. You mean a lot to all of us. When you spend everyday together and your life depends on that person, you can't help but form an attachment. We've been friends for a long time but it's gone beyond that, you're part of my family. You're a sister to me just like Jill. Don't ever forget that and in our family there isn't any penalty for asking for help."

"I just wish you didn't have to go through what you did."

"What I went through was minimal; I actually got the number of one of the cops who arrested me." Kris said laughing.

"Only you Kris," Kelly said smiling and shaking her head. "No, I could see Jill doing that as well, so I guess it runs in the Munroe family."

"It's good to see you smile, check out some of the clothes I picked up. Bosley's going to hit the roof when he sees the bill, but I didn't have time for bargain shopping. I'm gonna head off downstairs and see what Julie's up to. Try and get a little rest."

"Thank Kris, for everything."

"You're welcome," Kris replied as she slipped out the door.

A few hours later, Kris and Julie arrived at Kelly's door. They had called ahead and Kelly was just finishing her make-up when they arrived.

"Hey nice outfit," Julie commented as Kelly opened the door.

"Yes, Kris knows my tastes well. Everything you picked out was incredible." Kelly acknowledged as Julie and Kris entered the room.

"I aim to please. I just talked to Bri and let her know that we would be on our way shortly."

"Well I'm ready," Kelly said picking up the purse that Kris had procured, which had some cash and a company charge card in it.

They dined at a steakhouse not far from the airport. Although enjoying each other's company the Angels were more subdued than normal. Kelly hadn't really had time to let everything sink in, Sabrina was concerned about Tina, Julie still had the fact in her mind that her miscue could have been fatal, and Kris was still feeling the effects of being in jail and having to travel so extensively in just a short time. After lunch, they took Sabrina to the terminal and there were hugs and promises to see each other more often. Then Kelly, Kris and Julie headed back to the hotel.

"Kelly, I didn't bring it up at lunch, but I got a call from Charlie before I picked you up. He wants Julie and me to come back to L.A. tomorrow. Apparently there's a case that he would like us to start on as soon as possible."

"Just Julie and you?" Kelly asked hesitantly.

"He doesn't expect you to come back until you're ready." Kris clarified.

"Kris, I'm ready. I want to go back with you and Julie tomorrow. I need to get home and back to work."

"Are you sure? Charlie wanted me to make it clear that the case could be handled by Julie and me alone. He did add that he wished you were available."

"Kris, I'll give him a call and let him know myself, but I think getting back into things as soon as possible is the best thing for me."

"The plane is leaving here at 7:30 tomorrow, so you might want to give him a call to see if he can get you on the same flight."

"I will do that."

"So do you want to meet later for dinner or are you just going to order room service and relax tonight?" Julie asked deciding to join the conversation.

"Actually, I've got someone I have to say goodbye to, so you two will have to miss my company this evening."

"I bet I know who it is?" Kris chided.

"Who?" Kelly played along.

"The cute priest, Bri told me about him. I heard you spent the weekend together." Kris teased.

"It is Fr. Tim, but he was a perfect gentleman the entire time."

"Now what fun is that?" Julie piped in.

Kelly laughed and rolled her eyes. "I have to say goodbye, he saved my life and he risked his, I owe him at least a farewell in person."

"We're just kidding, we heard all about him from Bri, he seems like a great guy. I'm glad he took care of our best pal." Kris said putting her arm around Kelly's shoulder and giving her a hug.

"Maybe, I'll stop by and see you when I get back, if it isn't too late. After all I may be preoccupied." She replied cagily.

"We'll see you tonight, but just in case, we're leaving here at 5:15 tomorrow."

"I'll be ready.

Kelly knocked on the door of the rectory, the bell seeming to have no effect.

"Hello miss, can I help you," a short, rotund woman in a floral print dress answered the door."

"I'm here to see Fr. Tim."

"Do you have an appointment?"

"No, I can't say that I do, I was just stopping by to say goodbye, I'm leaving for Los Angeles tomorrow." Kelly explained.

"Oh yeah, you're the criminal lady, he had up at the old monastery."

Kelly was unsure how to answer that. "Could I just see him for a moment?" She asked again.

"Sure, sure come in. I'm sorry we just have so many ladies trying meet with Fr. Tim, that I practically have to shoe them away with a broom."

"Agnes, who is it?" Tim came around from the corner into the foyer where Kelly stood.

"It be the lady from the monastery."

"Kelly, how are you. It's good to see you out of jail." He joked.

"It's good to be out. I just stopped by to thank you for all you did. I'm going to be leaving for L.A. in the morning."

"Sure get out of town before we ever finish that backgammon tournament." He said smiling.

"I guess that gives me a reason to come back."

"Kelly Garrett, you are always welcome here. I will never forget you."

"Nor I you, Father."

"Ah, so it's father again. I thought we had an agreement."

"Very well, Tim, I can't tell you how grateful I am to you. You saved my life."

"It was completely worth it, you're very special."

"So are you. I'll miss your humor."

"I'll miss your coffee." He replied instantly.

"Well, I've got to be going, I just stopped over to see your aunt and thank her, now I've got to get packed and ready for tomorrow, but I couldn't leave without thanking you again."

"You'll keep in touch?"

"Yeah, I'd like to know how that football team of yours is doing. Goodbye Tim," she said as she kissed him on the cheek and headed out the door.

A few months later after Kelly had been back home and back to work, the phone rang echoing within her quiet bedroom rousing Kelly from a just begun sleep. She squinted and looked to her clock radio, the lights glowed red like a dragon's in the night. It was nearly midnight. Kelly pounced on the phone answering before the second ring.

"Hello," she answered in a groggy yet adrenaline filled voice.

"Kelly, it's Tim. I'm calling to ask a favor of you."

"What is it Tim?" Kelly asked wondering what favor was so urgent that he had to call at midnight.

"My aunt, Sr. Anne has taken ill and the doctors don't think that she has very long. However, when I saw her this evening she requested that I contact you. She very much wants to speak with you. I realize that you are probably busy, and I wouldn't have called so late, but time is at a premium for her now."

"Tim, I have a couple of meetings scheduled this week but nothing that can't wait. I'll give my boss a call tomorrow and clear things with him, then I will take the next plane out."

"Kelly, I really appreciate this. She was very adamant that she wanted to speak with you."

Kelly spoke with Charlie the next morning and got the time off. Julie and Kris could handle the upcoming cases on their own. She hurriedly packed not knowing how long she was going to stay but planned for a week just to be safe. She contacted the airlines and miraculously got a direct flight that would leave at noon. She called Kris and asked if she wouldn't mind stopping by to pick up her mail and explained what was going on. Kris offered to take her to the airport and Kelly accepted happy to not have to deal with the hassle of a cab. Kris showed up a few minutes after 10. She called Tim and caught him at the rectory where she got the hospital details. Then she called up a hotel near the hospital and booked a room.

"Hey, I'm sorry to hear about Sr. Anne. I know she's very important to you." Kris said after greetings had been exchanged.

"I've been meaning to go back and see her but I've been so busy the last few months. I talked to Tim about a month back and he said that she had a mild heart attack, but seemed to have bounced back. His call last night indicated that she is very close to death. I hope I make it there in time to see her."

"It's nice that she wants to see you. I'm sure it will bring her comfort."

"I can't quite figure out why she wants to see me though. She dealt with so many children over the years. I'm sure there are others that she would to see just as much."

"Kelly, I think she knows just how special you are. You're unique, special."

"True, True I don't think another of her charges indirectly lead to the near explosion of the orphanage." Kelly said laughing.

"Is this it," Kris said as she put the small carryon bag next to Kelly's suitcase into the back of the Cobra.

"I hope so, I can't think of anything else. Thanks for driving Kris, I really appreciate it"

"Hey no problem, I had the day off so it was no hassle at all."

Even with a few L.A. traffic delays, Kris still got Kelly to the airport in plenty of time. They exchanged goodbyes and Kelly headed off to the terminal. Her flight took off on time and it was a smooth ride. Collecting her luggage, she headed over to the car rental area where she picked up a familiar, yellow mustang and headed off to her hotel. She didn't delay long, just checked in and then headed over to the hospital.

"Hello Tim," Kelly said as she walked into the room of the hospital.

"Hi Kelly it's good to see you again." He said giving her a quick peck on the cheek.

"Auntie, Kelly is here now," He said squatting down to speak with her beside the bed.

"Kelly, it is good of you to come. I've so much to say and my time here is lessening." The nun said as Kelly came beside the bed.

"Sister, don't exert yourself. I'll be here as long as you need me to be."

"You've got to understand that I never wanted to hurt you and I hope that you will forgive me." She said her voice weak but clear.

"You saved my life, you gave me the only love I knew as a child, you've never hurt me and there is certainly nothing to forgive." Kelly said soothingly as she held her hand.

"No I was wrong to make decisions for you and choices that should have belonged to you. Kelly, I know who your mother was." The nun said quickly but full of emotion.

Kelly looked at the frail woman on the bed and was unconvinced she had heard her right. "My mother?" She asked quietly. "You know who she is?" Kelly questioned unsure if the nun was really aware of what she was saying.

"Yes Kelly, your mother was my sister." The nun replied in a whisper.

Tim looked across at Kelly a stunned realization washing over them.

"Your sister, you mean Tim's mother?" Kelly searched for clarification.

"Yes my only sister Grace was your mother. Your mother was seventeen when she had you Kelly. My mother was not pleased and had sent Grace away to have you. A scandal like that just wouldn't be acceptable in our household. I had entered the convent but hadn't taken my final vows. Grace wrote to me and asked me to take you in until she could come and get you. Of course that is what I did."

"Then she was killed in the car accident and that's why she never came." Kelly reasoned aloud.

"Kelly, I never knew who your father was. As close as Grace and I were, she never revealed it. I know that she loved you very much. She was on her way to pick you up the day that she was killed. Tim, I know this must be hard for you to hear, and I'm to blame for putting your mother on a pedestal to you. She loved your father and was so happy that she had you, but having you is what really stirred her longings for her other child. She wanted to have you both together. She never told your dad about Kelly, but she knew that once she brought her home and explained things to him, he would be understanding. As I've told you before, your dad was the kindest, most gentle man I've ever known and losing your mother devastated him. He blamed God for her death and it changed him. I didn't think I could burden him with another child when one was already a daunting task for him. That's when I decided to keep Kelly at the orphanage with me. At least she would have someone looking out for her even if she didn't know it. I am so sorry that I kept this from you all this time."

"Sister, you did the best you could and there is nothing to forgive. I am grateful that you told me. I know that it must have been a difficult thing for you. I also want to thank you for all your kindness, thoughts and prayers all these years. I know they've helped me through some tough times."

"Auntie, this is wonderful news. It isn't difficult for me at all. I feel very lucky to have a new sister." Tim reassured the old woman, his face awash in happiness.

"Your mother would have been so proud of the both of you. Kelly, you look just like her and you both have her green eyes. She used to say that it was a bit of the emerald isle that she carried with her." The nun said as her own eyes twinkled and she recalled happier times.

"Sister, I have so many questions. Obviously, I wasn't expecting this today, so forgive me if my thoughts are disjointed."

"Kelly, you have the right to ask all the questions you like. I will answer them to the best of my ability."

"Sister, why did you have me placed in a foster home, when I thought you wanted to keep an eye on me?"

"The first family you were with, the Whitcombs were a wonderful family, and I knew that they would treat you as their own. If you recall, I believe you were very happy there, until Mr. Whitcomb's illness. When he passed away, Mrs. Whitcomb could no longer afford to care for you and that's when the trouble began. You were 14 when he died and that's when the system let you down. They bounced you from one foster family to the next. None of them understood your sensitive nature and having so much to deal with as a teen made you a bit rebellious. Once you left the orphanage, I no longer had any control over your placement. If I could have seen the future, I would never have sent you to the foster system."

"Do you have a photo of my mother?"

"I do back in my room. I always feared that you might see it and make the connection. In some ways I even hoped that you might."

"I have a photo." Tim said reaching into his pocket and taking out his wallet.

"Looking at it, I can't believe I didn't see the resemblance. You really do look a great deal like her." Tim said handing the picture to Kelly.

Kelly looked at the photo saw a beautiful, young woman beaming with pride as she held her child. Kelly was overwhelmed with emotion as she studied the woman's every feature and she found herself choking up as she fought back tears. This long awaited day was nothing like she imagined and yet it was poignant and comfortable and satisfying.

"Sister, is Kelly my real name?"

"Yes, Kelly as I told you, I gave you my name, my surname Garrett. However, I also gave you my first name Kelly. My sister had wanted to name her daughter after me. When I entered the convent and had to choose my nun name, I chose my middle name Anne coupled with Mary because there is no saint Kelly. I hadn't wanted to give up my name, but Grace said that she would name her first daughter, Kelly after me to make it easier on me. It is hard to give up your name and with it a sense of who you are. Now I realize that this is only because we who choose this life must suppress our individual personalities to work as a united group with a singular purpose. Still it gave me great joy to see your name on the honors list or later when you experienced so much success in your career."

"Did anyone know? Did anyone else ever come looking for me?"

"Kelly no one else ever came to speak to me about you. Your records were kept in the offices of the old orphanage, but when that caught fire, they were destroyed. It meant that I was the only one who knew the truth. As I told you I honestly do not know who your father is and I know that he was not listed on your committal papers. The father section of your birth certificate had missing written into it. I have never seen that notation on another certificate. Your grandmother was aware of your birth and she knew that Grace had placed you for adoption, but neither Grace nor I ever told her that you were with me. She was with Grace the day that you were born. Once you had been given over to the orphanage, Grace returned home from her trip abroad as my mother described it. Our mother was a good woman; she was just very stringent in her beliefs and rules."

"Sister, I'm not judging anyone, I'm just glad to finally have a sense of where I came from. I don't think that there has been a minute in my life when I didn't wonder about whom I am or where my parents were. I at least know part of the puzzle now."

"Kelly, I sincerely ask your forgiveness but believe me when I say that I was only trying to do what I thought best at the time."

"Sister, don't be troubled. I feel happier than I have in a long time. I've gained an aunt and a brother in just under an hour. I'm a part of a family and I'm going to like that."

"You have always been special to me, but never more than at this very moment. I know that Grace will wonder why it took me so long to tell you, but I know that she has always been looking out for you. I want you to know that above all else your mother was happy to have had you and that she loved you. I'm sorry Kelly, but I'm feeling a bit tired, will you be here in the morning?"

"Of course, I'll be here. You get your rest."

Although Kelly was bursting with questions, she knew that the infirmed woman needed her rest. They exchanged goodbyes and Tim walked out with her.

"Would you like to go out for coffee? I might be able to fill in some blanks for you, even though I really don't remember her."

"I'd like that."

"There's a café at the end of the block that's open all night. It's a short walk."

"Lead the way."

They took the elevator down to street level and walked to the café. It was a dark, star deficient night and a strong wind chilled the air. Tim ever the gentleman took off his coat and placed it around Kelly's shoulders. When they arrived at the café, Tim was stopped by two forty something women.

"Hello Mrs. McAllister and Miss Thorne, how are you ladies this evening." His voice sounded extra cheery.

"I'm doing fine, Father." Mrs. McAllister replied.

Ignoring his greeting Miss Thorne immediately began to grill him about Kelly. "I see you have a lovely companion with you this evening, Father."

"Oh yes, forgive my rudeness," Tim sputtered as he introduced Kelly. "Mrs. McAllister, Miss Thorne, this is my sister, Kelly. He beamed as he finished. "These ladies are members of my congregation." Tim explained to Kelly.

"Well, it's nice to meet you." Mrs. McAllister said offering her hand to Kelly.

Miss Thorne was a little less sure whether it was nice to meet Kelly or not. "I didn't realize that you had a sister, Father Tim."

"Neither did I." Tim said a wicked grin forming on his face. "It was good to see you ladies, but my sister just got in from Los Angeles so if you would excuse me I've got a lot of catching up to do." He said as he walked Kelly to the back of the café.

The two women headed for the exit and Miss Thorne whispered frantically in the ear of Mrs. McAllister. Tim could only wonder what tales would be told about him.

"They seemed very nice." Kelly said as she slipped into the booth.

"Remember that lying is a sin." Tim said as he opened up his menu.

"Mrs. McAllister was pleasant enough."

"Actually Abigail McAllister is one of those women who keep the church running. She volunteers for everything from cleaning the church, to working bingo, to tutoring kids in math. You're right she is a good and decent woman who is very bland and has terrible taste in friends."

"And Miss Thorne, is she one of those poor choices in friends?" Kelly asked knowingly.

"Julia Thorne is the most aptly named person I have ever met. She is a thorn in almost everyone's side that she has ever met. Nothing ever suits her and she is the biggest gossip in whole parish. I'm sure that by tomorrow, she will have spread the news of our "date."

"But you explained that I was your sister."

"Yes, but she makes it her business to know the details of everyone's life and as far as she knows, I have no sister, so there must be a reason for me to lie about it. Besides, it galls me that I can't be seen in the company of a woman without some impropriety being assumed. I took a vow of chastity, this doesn't mean that I would forego ever speaking to a woman again."

"Do you feel better now that you've gotten that off your chest?" Kelly asked a bit amused.

"I'm sorry; there are just so many hassles with this job that I never anticipated."

"I think that's the nature of all jobs. After all, I never realized that I'd have to play football as part of my job."

"You played football?" Tim asked incredulously.

"Yes, I played running back."

"How did this come about?"

"Someone was trying to put a woman's pro team out of business, so they asked for our help. Turns out, someone was trying to steal the concert receipts at the L.A. Coliseum from the night before."

"Did you actually have to play in a game?"

"We could have avoided it completely, but Sabrina is competitive and she really wanted to give it a try, so Kris and I went along. We ended up winning the game."

"Could there be any doubt of that?" Tim replied laughing.

The waitress stopped by the table and took their order. Tim ordered black coffee and a slice of apple pie. Kelly skipped the pie and ordered coffee with cream.

"I bet you've had quite a few adventures." Tim began as the waitress left the table.

"Many, but sometimes I wonder if it isn't time to do something that is a little less adventurous. A former colleague of mine, Tiffany Welles, once commented to me that she had wanted adventure and excitement and once she found it as a detective, she realized it wasn't what she thought it would be."

"You're so good at what you do. The world needs more people like you. Although now that you're my sister, I'm going to have to worry about you more."

"Tim, you've really been terrific about all of this. You don't have any problems with it. I could understand if it's a difficult thing to accept."

"No, I don't have any problems with it at all. Actually, it seems natural and the way things should have always been. I can't explain it. Maybe it was because I got to know you and like you that it wasn't an adjustment. You must be the one who's taken aback by all this."

"I don't think it has really sunk in. I have all these questions and they're all converging at once. I'm not even sure what to ask. I don't want to hurt Sr. Anne, but there is so much that I want to know. There are a million questions, but I don't want to waste any of my time with something unimportant. I know that Sr. Anne is ill so I don't want to tire her and I don't want to squander the time I have with her on superficial things."

"I don't think you'll find that she minds talking about our mother. They were very close and because of her I feel like I know my mother even though I really have no memories of my own. She was a bit of a non-conformist, a bit of a tomboy, and incredibly strong willed. Apparently her temperament often conflicted with our grandmother's, although as my aunt tells it, it was only because they were very much alike. Our grandfather was a meek fellow named John Riley Garrett and his wife was Bridget, Sullivan being her maiden name."

"A few years back I was told that I was the heir to a hotel fortune in San Diego and everything pointed to it being true, but it never felt right to me. I can't explain it, but I knew that it wasn't right. As it turned out I lost someone I was very close to, and nearly ruined a dear friendship because of the situation. I don't feel that way this time. I have no doubts that what Sr. Anne is telling me is true. I'm absolutely amazed to hear the names of my grandparents. I always hoped but as time goes on, that hope begins to dissipate."

"I can't believe that my aunt would have you fly here and tell you this on her death bed and have it not be true. Kelly, I think it is a safe bet to assume that what she is telling you is the truth."

"That may be a part of it, but it just feels right, like this is who I am."

"That's because it is who you are. Would you like me to give you a ride back to your hotel?" He asked as they finished up their coffee.

"No I rented a car, it's back at the hospital parking garage."

"So is mine, I'll walk you back and I'll see you sometime tomorrow?"

"What time do you think would be good?" Kelly asked.

"I think 11:00 would be a good time. Would you like me to pick you up then?

"Sure," Kelly replied as they left payment on the table and headed out of the café. "I'm staying at the Hyatt on Austin Street.

"Then I will see you tomorrow at 11:00."

"Sounds great, I'll be ready." Kelly answered as they made their way into the parking garage and took the elevator up to the 3rd level where her car was waiting. "Good night Tim and thanks for everything."

"Good night sis, now stay out of trouble until I come by tomorrow." He replied in a mockingly, stern voice.

Kelly laughed, gave him a hug and hopped into her car. Tim headed back towards the elevator.

When Kelly returned to her hotel room, she was feeling a curious mix of emotions, true joy even elation and yet a quiet sadness also crept in from time to time. She had found out who her mother was and had discovered a new aunt and brother but one of those was already set to leave her. She knew that she could not sleep and she had to tell someone the news so she picked up the phone and called Sabrina.

"Hey Bri, it's Kelly."

"Kel, what's happening?" Sabrina replied in an obviously upbeat tone.

"I've got some big news. I've discovered who my mother was."

With that Kelly revealed the events of the day to her friend who was genuinely pleased to hear the news. They talked for nearly an hour and Kelly realized this was going to be one extreme long distance charge. However, being able to share this kind of news with Bri made everything worth it. Nearing 1 a.m. Central time, she hung up and was now ready for bed.

The phone awoke Kelly close to 7 the next morning.

"Kelly, it's Tim, my aunt, our aunt" he corrected himself, "she isn't doing very well and the doctor called to have me come down. I thought you might like to come."

"Of course, Tim," Kelly replied groggily, give me twenty minutes and I'll be ready.

"Take a half hour, it will take me that long to get ready and get over there myself. See you in a bit." He said as he hung up.

Kelly got into the shower, and was happy that it had both the desired effect of calming her down by the warm sprays of water, and in waking her up so that she could clear her mind. Tim, ever punctual was there in 30 minutes and they hurried over the short distance to the hospital.

When they arrived, they were surprised to see Sr. Anne sitting upright in the bed. She smiled broadly when she saw them and kissed them each on the cheek.

"I'm glad to see the both of you. Kelly, I wasn't so sure you would be back. I thought perhaps after having some time to think, you may have wanted nothing to do with me."

"No more talk of that, I'm glad to be here." Kelly said in a gentle voice.

"Tim, I've had a discussion with my doctors and I'm planning on leaving the hospital today."

"But they called to tell me," he stopped himself and hesitated.

"They called to tell you I was dying. Yes, I'm aware of that. I just don't want to do it here. They disagree, but either way I'm not going to be here so why should I take up a bed here when I could be back with the sisters whom I love in my own home."

"If the doctors want you to stay, you really should listen to them." Tim reasoned.

"Timothy, I have not asked you for much over these years, but this is not something I wish to debate. I want to go home and I want to do it immediately." She said mustering all her strength to get the words out.

Tim looked to Kelly but she offered no comment.

"Tim, I know you don't want to let me go, but it's my time. I've accepted it, and there is nothing we can do to change it. I have so many things that I want to share with you and Kelly. Please speak with the doctors and arrange for the ambulance to take me back to the convent."

"If that's what you wish, I'll do it. Let me go talk to the nurse and see what I can arrange." Tim replied as he walked out of the room to the nurses' station.

"Kelly, there's something I want to tell you and you'll probably think I'm a crazy old woman which I may be, but last night, I can't say if it was in a dream or not, but I saw your mother. She was radiantly beautiful and she told me that soon I would be joining her, so that was a great comfort. She also told me to tell you that she has always been with you, watching and looking out for you. She wished that she didn't have to be separated from you, but that you've become a strong, independent woman because you've been on your own. She loves you very much."

Kelly could hardly speak as she fought back tears and the lump in her throat keeping her from saying what she thought.

"I think you've just given me the best gift, I've ever received." She finally managed to get the words out.

"It was the most marvelous vision, I only wish I could share it completely with you."

Tim walked back into the room. "The nurses are working on your paperwork and they are calling up the ambulance. Apparently, you are very good and making your wishes clear, as they were already working on it."

They all continued to talk quietly, when another sister from the order arrived. She would ride along in the ambulance with Sr. Anne on the way back to the convent. When the ambulance was ready, a couple of orderlies came up to take Sr. Anne downstairs, the nun followed behind. Kelly and Tim told her that they would be behind the ambulance and would see her when she arrived back at the convent.

Kelly got into the car and was quiet.

"So what were you two talking about while I was out of the room?" he asked.

"She told me she saw our mother last night in a dream or some kind of vision."

"She probably did." Tim replied as though Kelly had just told him the car was too warm.

"You really think so?"

"It is very common with people who are dying to see loved ones who have gone before them. I believe her. It is actually harder to accept what our hearts most want than it is to deny it and not risk anything."

"He's a philosopher too," Kelly teased.

They arrived at the convent and a cluster of nuns formed around the ambulance as the doors opened. Sr. Anne was lowered out of the vehicle and she smiled brightly and greeted all her friends as they followed her inside the convent. After she was situated in her room, Kelly and Tim came inside. It was a small room, with a single bed, dresser, tiny closet, a couple of plants and a bookshelf.

"Tim bring me that book on the very bottom shelf to the right."

Tim pointed to the book and the nun nodded yes. It was a photo album and Tim opened it before her and Kelly and he looked on.

Sr. Anne went through every photo in the book, and explained each one in detail to Kelly and Tim. Tim had seen the photos before, but never had his aunt explained them all in such detail. She seemed to grow stronger as she spoke of the pictures and it obviously gave her much comfort. Here and there throughout the day, the nuns would pop in and out to check on her. One would bring her medication, another some soup or coffee, they were all very attentive and Kelly could see why the nun had wanted to be brought back home. Kelly relished hearing anything of her mother and she spent the whole day with Sr. Anne and Tim, listening to stories about her mom and seeing photos that Sr. Anne had kept. She had finally discovered the family she had long sought. Sr. Anne had taken a nap when Tim and Kelly had lunch with the other sisters, but otherwise it had been a busy day for her. Kelly and Tim were about to leave to let her rest, but she requested that they stay. Tim and Kelly talked quietly in the room as the nun fell asleep, and eventually sleep also claimed them. When they awoke, Sr. Anne's breathing was no longer labored as it had been, that was because she was no longer breathing. Kelly checked for a pulse, but there wasn't any. Tears welled up in Tim's eyes and Kelly put her arm around him. He sobbed quietly beside the nun's bed as Kelly tried to soothe him. Tears would not come for her, she had been given such a sense of peace by this woman that she believed she was truly in a better place. Tim gave her last rights and left the room to find some of the nuns. The sisters all began to file into the room and each knelt along the bedside, one leading the others in a rosary. Kelly stood back from the rest and just observed, when one of the other nuns walked over to Sr. Anne's shelf and picked up a box, which contained a rosary and handed to Kelly. It had been years since she said the repetitive prayer, but she was surprised at how easily it came back to her. When they finished, all the nuns filed out of the room except for the one who had given Kelly the rosary.

"Anne told me to give you that." She said pointing to the rosary, she said it was your mother's. Tim, you have her wedding rosary, but the one that I gave you, Kelly was the one she received on her First Communion.

"Thank you." Kelly replied holding the beads gently in her hands.

The next morning Kelly called Kris to tell her what had happened. There would be two days for the wake and then Sr. Anne would be buried. The bishop would have the funeral and Tim would concelebrate. Then Kelly would be back in L.A. She talked to Kris for nearly an hour explaining to her everything that had taken place over the past couple of days.

The next couple of days were a blur, but it was fascinating for Kelly to see the efficiency with which the convent ran and the rituals and traditions that were a part of a sister's last journey. Tim introduced her to many of his parishioners and she also met a couple of former classmates from her grade school days. The funeral was beautiful with the altar arrayed in many flowers. The singing of the nuns, the incense all added to the mystique. At the graveside service, Kelly cried for the first time since Sr. Anne had died. She would no longer have the one person who had looked out for her as a child. As the nuns and the rest of the mourners filed away from the burial site, Tim came over to Kelly. He looked so stately in his cassock and she was proud that he was her brother.

"How are you holding up?" He asked.

"I'm fine." Kelly said rubbing a tear away.

"Good, I thought you might like to see something while you were out here."

Tim guided Kelly along to the roadside and they walked a short distance to a little cluster of bushes. At the base of the bushes were two ruddy colored headstones with the names Grace Daugherty and Thomas Daugherty.

"Kelly, that's our mother's grave." Tim pointed out what Kelly had already deduced. Suddenly images the photos came into her mind and even though Kelly would never meet her, she was no longer a faceless stranger but a reality to her. A lovely bouquet of white roses sat in a vase between the two graves.

"Did you bring the flowers?" Kelly asked Tim.

"I try to bring them flowers every time, I'm out here. Sometimes it's once a week or more, sometimes a month goes by."

"You're such a good son. Sr. Anne told me that when you see a white rose unexpectedly it means that someone you love who has died is trying to let you know that they are safe and happy. I'd like to think these were a sign."

"So are you going back to Los Angeles tomorrow?"

"I should be back there today, Kris and Julie have already started working on a case. Bosley and I will go over it tomorrow and then we'll set up our covers. It is some sort of industrial espionage thing. We're being sent in to find out who is leaking secrets to a competitor."

"It doesn't sound terribly dangerous." Tim acknowledged. "Still I'm going to worry about you. I expect a call every now and then to let me know that you're alive and well."

"I promise little brother that I will keep you up to date." Kelly said smiling as they walked back down to the road and headed for Tim's car.

Tim laughed at the little brother reference, but thought it sounded nice "I also fully expect to see you here for Christmas," he insisted.

"You know that you could come to L.A.?" Kelly countered.

"I could and I shall, just not at Christmas. Priests can't take vacations near Christmas or Easter, it is our busy time of the year."

"Then you can expect me here for Christmas and I will expect a visit from you at some other time."

"That will be perfect, now let's go finish that backgammon tournament." He said with a chuckle.


End file.
